----New Year's Eve ~~

--"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."
---[Revelation 22:13 / NIV] --

----I'm sipping my first cup of coffee on the last day of the year. It's still dark, and I nudge the curtain to catch the first of light. It's still dark, and I nudge the curtain to catch the first glimpse of light. It's an odd personal tradition, a secret I've kept until now--to watch the sunrise on both the last day and first day of the year.

My ritual started eighteen years ago. I was pregnant with my oldest and had been up early that New Year's Eve morning quite by accident. I was struck by the beauty of the sunrise when it occurred to me that this might be a wonderful way to commemorate this special time. I knew I'd be too tired to stay up to midnight, so I thought. I may not see the ball drop. but I'll watch it rise!

The Japanese have a word that means welcoming the first sunrise of the New Year, hatsuhinode. I zipper my winter coat over my bathrobe, find my favorite hat and knitted mittens, and go to our side porch, which faces east.

The first hint of light gives shape to the darkness. From the sheer silence, it seems I am the only one awake. Perfect. Just God and me, and I' m taken by the mystery of it all--the passage of time and the challenges and blessings that will unfold in the days to come. My thoughts shift to loved ones. I pray for good fortune and health and then I let go of thinking. I lose myself in the holiness of the moment, the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the grace of God shining right now. ~~

--"Heavenly Father, You are the beginning and the end, the Light of my life. I trust You with my days and I praise you for your glory. Help me, Lord, to keep You the center of my life throughout this upcoming New Year, in the Name of your Son, Jesus Christ. "

--Guideposts/SC~