12.31.2008

HINGE DAY

No time like a New Year to start a new adventure.

Hinge Day.

Back when our ancesters were mainly agraian, living close to the earth and her rythms, they counted years in thirteen months of 28 days. 364. Then they added one extra day at the end. They called it Hinge Day. The old and new years swung on that day. They had their harvest celebation and their new year celebation, but Hinge Day was a quite time of reflection. A time to examin self and look through the door of the closing year and see what they had done well and where they could have done better. After a time they would turn, standing in that liminal space, facing the new year and think about the possibilities.

I have followed this pattern for years, attempting to be honest with myself about the year passing to a close. Looking to the coming year with hope and enthusiaism for the things I love doing and the people I love doing them with. What forces, factors, and influences might come from the world around me, and how do I want to respond to them. What can I do to improve on past experience? How can I promote, and encourage better interaction in the communities I'm a part of, in a time when fear and doubt pervade our thoughts, our very physiologies? How can I find news ways to be a Peace Maker and a Peace Keeper? Or maybe they are old ways remembered. Whether new or old, for them to be real, they must be made fresh in the heart, mind and the actions taken. No small task. To meet life as it is, and remain awake to it, is a huge challenge. I dedicate myself to it.

Blessings and Goodwill to you in 2009.