When I was younger, New Year’s Eve was a time for partying, celebrating, and much revelry. All your friends were going out and if you didn’t have somewhere to go, you felt left out. You heard about New Year’s resolutions wherever you went and felt you had to make some of your own – even if you didn’t tell anyone what they were. It didn’t seem as though you had a voice of your own.
Many years down the road, the realization that the New Year is a time for reflection and, perhaps, an appraisal of one’s life, is the recurring theme. Nothing new or life-changing will happen as of midnight tonight. The potential for the new lies withing each and everyone of us though. The date will change to January 1st and the year to 2013.
At this time of life, it is a time for gratitude. Another year of challenges and opportunities has passed and with the dawning of a New Year, I am hopeful that I will be given the strength to deal with whatever is in store. As each year rolls by, I hope to be able to voice more of who I really am. I want the resolutions to be truly mine.
Whether this is a time of revelry or a time of reflection, hope you all have a very Happy New Year – new beginnings, new ways of voicing! All the images in this collage were taken at different times in the past year at many wonderful celebrations of life, love, and friendship. Enjoy the collage!