HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
I’m going to be honest with you, this year has been the bomb. From sickness to the deaths in family, to writing interruptions, because of the traumatic situations, this 2025 passage was extremely dark and rough. I kept waiting for another shoe to drop, and it always did, and they kept coming in bits and pieces. This threw me into a process of learning how to deal with the tragedies occurring in my life.
The first thing I learned is that you don’t control trauma. There is no way to run from it or to beat it over the head and be victorious over it without having faith in someone who is bigger than yourself. In my case, that someone was and still is God.
Thinking that the tide was over, on the Second Christmas Day, December 26, I received a phone call informing me that my nephew had been killed on Christmas Day. I thought to myself if anyone had told me at the beginning of 2025, I would receive notices of five deaths sprinkled out over 2025, that would pinch me in my heart, I wouldn’t have believed them. But it happened, and I am thankful that I was able to work through it and keep slowly moving forward.
As traumatic as things were in my 2025, I am thankful that gratitude permeates my life. It is now January 1, 2026, and I woke up this morning thankful to see a New Year and no snow in the area where I live. The sun is even showing itself every now and then. 🙂 I’m thankful to have that first cup of coffee, to hear my voice as I sang the first song that rose up in my heart, and to look out of my patio windows and see squirrels climbing in my trees and birds flying low between the green leaves.
Now that I have taken my first steps into 2026, let me say that I hope all my readers and friends crossed into 2026 and are looking forward to a great year.
Getting back to the title of my New Year’s article, One of my favorite passages in the Bible is the title of this blog article:
My Beloved spoke, and said to me,
Rise up, my love, my fair one,
And come away.
For lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
(Song of Solomon 2:10-12, NKJV)
Let us hope that this is so in our individual passages in 2026.
Take care.
Shalom shalom
Wish you a blessed new year, Pat. May it be peaceful and kind.
This message comes with a wish and a prayer for smoother sailing in 2026 and beyond, dear Pat!
This comment has been copied into my blog because the woman who wrote it could not put it into my WordPress blog because of the defect that I am having with receiving comments. Thank you, Nicole
Liebe Patti ,
ich denke du hast in deinem Artikel genau die richtigen Punkte getroffen , die uns mehr oder weniger alle betreffen.
Leider wird vieles zurück gehalten und verschleiert.
So kommt es , dass viele Menschen in so dramatischen Situationen versuchen alleine mit dem Trauma fertig zu werden .
Meiner Erfahrung nach sind wir Menschen aber nicht dafür „ gemacht „ was uns sehr in den Abgrund ziehen kann.
Warum keine Hilfe annehmen ???
Das ist Stolz an der falschen Stelle.
Ich bin dankbar für Unterstützung und Zusammenhalt .
Genau wie du es schreibst .
5 Todesnachrichten letztes Jahr sind schwer zu ertragen.
Trotzdem die grundlegende Dankbarkeit zu bewahren ist nicht selbstverständlich und ich bewundere das .
Genauso ist mein Bestreben und ich denke das ist der richtige Weg.
Ich wünsche und bete für ein gutes 2026 , vielleicht auch besser als 2025 für dich und uns alle 🙏
Nicole 🫶
Dear Pat, you are more than a conqueror as you follow the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart aches for your sorrow at the losses of 2025, and rejoices in the fact that we are on a journey Home together. Your beautiful post and Scripture say it all. Gratitude is the antidote to despair. Sunshine and warmth always follows cold and rain. God is still in control, and He will always love you.
Blessings,
Patty
This comment was written to me by Barbara Murray. WordPress would not except her comment and she sent it to me and I have copied it in for her. Thank you Barbara
Life has its challenges. Reading Pat’s short story fills the heart with sadness — so many losses in one year can feel overwhelming. It is true that in these times one can feel deep sorrow and hurt. But God… As a devoted Christian, she knows she is more than a conqueror through our Lord Jesus Christ, who carried all our pain, struggles, sickness, and sin on the cross. Relying fully on Him, the Holy Spirit brings peace and hope even in the deepest loss.
After the rain, sunshine follows. The attacks of the enemy cannot prevail. In the authority of her faith, she will rise. I look forward to more of her beautiful writing and the blessings the Lord has prepared for her.
Pat, in your writing I’m feeling your thankfulness to God to be with you in all circumstances. You are really living and knowing this because of the goodness of Jesus. This is wonderful.
Liebe Patti, ich wünsche dir ein tolles neues Jahr und hoffe wirklich das der Winter in deinem Leben vorbei ist und der Regen aufhören wird. Es kann mit Gottes Hilfe nur besser werden. Du hast den Text sehr kurz und gut auf den Punkt gebracht. Danke…. Liebe Grüße Linda
Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2026, Pat.
dear Pat, we wish you a happy, peaceful and healthy new year. I embrace you