“And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.” ~ Rainer Maria Rilke
Happy New Year, beautiful people! I don’t believe there is a person among us who is not happy to say goodbye to 2020. However, I feel it is important to carry with us the lessons from the past year. Mom always said, “Count your blessings, life can change overnight.” I have always tried to count my blessings, but now more than ever. The past year has reminded me of how important it is to pay extra attention to the remarkable people in my life, as well as all the many marvelous details of which I have been graciously blessed. Most importantly, to hold tight to those I love. Life is so precious and COVID has also reminded me how quickly it can be gone.
While 2020 is now part of history, I do not believe 2021 is going to be all ‘cake and ice cream.’ Mask-wearing and social distancing will remain our good friends and patience will be required for a while longer. It is going to take time to get back to normal, but we will get there.
“We must free ourselves of the hope that the sea will ever rest. We must learn to sail in high winds. ~ Aristotle Onassis
“So many books, so little time.” ~
The week between Christmas and New Year’s is a favorite of mine. I give myself permission to be lazy, not cook, and to read and read and read. A Santa-helper named Mike brought me a wonderful book for Christmas. I devoured it in two days. Only because my eyes became tired did it take two days. For anyone who is interested in France, the lives of the French after the war, and the Holocaust, this is certainly a must-read book. It is on my shelf with other books I consider to be ‘The Best.’
The following is part of a review written by, Linda F. Burghardt a New York-based journalist. (See note at the end of this post.)
“Filled with a complex mixture of aching sadness and abundant joy, A Fifty-Year Silence follows the author’s very personal journey across two continents and three generations. Mouillot is the grandchild of Holocaust survivors, and she describes this fact of her life in simple yet heartbreaking words: “I’d grown up in a universe that revolved around an unspoken maxim: everything can fall apart.”
“Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird, That cannot fly.” ~
I also find these quiet days to be perfect for dreaming. Thinking of things I would like to do or places to visit once COVID is out of town. Many of us are eager to be with family and friends. To once again enjoy those warm hugs and sweet kisses. Others are keen to travel and complete canceled plans, which were made at a time that seems like ages ago.
And, there are those who want to learn new skills, such as cooking, painting, or photography. To register and participate in classes, make new like-minded acquaintances, all while learning something which is fun and interesting. These are a few ordinary things we have all enjoyed so many times and perhaps taken for granted. I know have.
“I close my eyes to old ends. And open my heart to new beginnings.” ~ Nick Frederickson
Dear friends, know I wish you and yours a spectacular New Year.
Most of all I wish you health, happiness, love, and peace.
And . . .
May the angels walk beside you every step of your journey, in 2021 and always.
“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come, Whispering ‘it will be happier’…” ~
Amour,
Sandra
Images: via Tumblr
Note: Linda F. Burghardt is a New York-based journalist and author who has contributed commentary, breaking news, and features to major newspapers across the U.S., in addition to having three non-fiction books published. She writes frequently on Jewish topics and is now serving as Scholar-in-Residence at the Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau County.
Happy New Year to you and yours, Sandra. This new year will begin much the same as the old one ends, but there is hope for the future. I just added the book you mentioned to my hold list at our local library. It sounds interesting.
Lorrie, I think you will enjoy the book. Happy New Year to you and your family. We will win this battle in time, I know we will. We will again see blue skies and better days. Until then, I am thankful for so many things. Including my wonderful blogging friends who brighten my days. That includes you, dear Lorrie.
Happy New Year! Thank you for sharing your beautiful posts! Best wishes!
Thank you, Maristella. Wishing you a wonderful New Year!
Happy New Year, Sandra. A little while longer in limbo, as long as it takes…..
Happy New Year to you, Rita. I agree, as long as it takes. Yesterday, our health department here in Harrison County announced that they will be taking appointments to vaccinate the 80-year-old population. They are going down through the age groups. Looking forward to this!
Happy New Year Sandra! Wishing you the most amazing 2021!
Thank you, Penny. Wishing you and yours a great New Year, celebrating your new home, and being with your family.
ya ha llegado el nuevo año…Algo hay nuevo en mí también: Ya puedo escribir en el ordenador y en papel con la mano derecha…Esto es para mí un logro importante porque mi brazo me duele mucho todavía pero ya voy recuperando algunos movimientos y eso me alegra mucho, Es mi regalo de año nuevo. El culmen será cuando me pueda peinar por mí misma…¡¡Que placer!!! jajajaja
Amiga querida, te deseo todo lo mejor en este nuevo año, que todos tus deeseos se cumplan y sobre todo que seas muy feliz a pesar de que esté todavía ese intruso al que nadie le ha convocado: el Covi-19.
Amor, suerte y felicidad, eso es lo que deseo para tí y los tuyos.
Dolores
The new year has arrived … Something is new in me too: I can now write on the computer and on paper with my right hand … This is an important achievement for me because my arm still hurts a lot but I am already recovering some movements and that makes me very happy, It is my new year gift. The culmination will be when I can comb my hair by myself … What a pleasure !!! LOL
My dear friend, I wish you all the best in this new year, that all your wishes are fulfilled and above all that you are very happy despite the fact that there is still that intruder that nobody has summoned: the Covi-19.
Love, luck and happiness, that is what I wish for you and yours.
Pains
Dearest Dolores, such wonderful news about your arm and yes it truly is your New Year gift. I can understand about combing your hair, that is something no one else can do like we do.
Dolores, I too, wish you the happiest New Year. May you find joy at every turn and may you soon be in your own home and once again enjoying the things you love. Many Blessings, dear friend.❤
Happy New Year, Sandra to you and Mike. I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned it but Mike is my husband’s name also.
I am looking forward to better days. I can be patient and continue safe habits knowing the vaccine will be forthcoming.
Bonnie, I know we will see better days, there will be struggles in 2021, but we will come through these crazy times and probably better and stronger people. They are beginning to vaccinate here in our state, starting with the age group of 80. Looking forward to our turn.
Bonnie, I did know your husband was named Mike – it is a good name.
Happy New Year, my friend, and Many Blessings.❤
That looks like a fabulous book — my kind of reading! And are those your quilts on the window ledge? I have two that from that angle look very much like a couple of those! Big smile — I love it when that happens. The events of 2020 have been a wake-up call for those of us lucky enough to survive it so far. I hope those lessons last. I’m reminded that the lessons of 9/11 seem to have been long forgotten. To you both, the most beautiful of new years. You are right — it won’t be a piece of cake, certainly not for awhile and really, I suspect for far beyond that. But hopefully we will begin to find the light. Happy New Year.
Hi, Jeanie. Jeanie, I feel like you will enjoy the book, I certainly did. No, the quilts are not mine. I have cupboards full of them and don’t use them as often as I should. I have them along the railing upstairs, and when you are downstairs and look up they are pretty to see.
I don’t like to wish my days away, but I will be happy when Jan. 20 is over. Hopefully, things will begin to move in a different and better direction. Our state is beginning to vaccinate, so that will have to help eventually with COVID.
Wishing you a Happy New Year, Jeanie. It will be lake time for you before you can blink.
Happy New Year!!! It will be awhile until life returns to our idea of normal, but I look forward with hope. I always loved the saying, “you can’t direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails”– it’s empowering to know that we can persevere through rough times . Thank you for the book suggestion; can’t wait to read it. My mom grew up in Germany, on a farm outside of Hanover, so I’ve heard a good deal about the atrocities that prevailed during Hitler’s reign. My mom’s family was Lutheran, but they had close Jewish friends who came to hide-out until my grandfather took them ( hidden in his hay wagon) to safety. It was a harrowing time for all concerned because, if caught, my grandfather would have been shot on the spot. I know that this helped shape my mom into the kind & loving person she was to everyone, and the model for the life my brother & I wanted for ourselves. My dad was in the 82nd. Airborne ( joined at just 16 years old). and a liberator at the Wobbelin Concentration Camp—many stories about WW ll. As a young girl, I didn’t grasp the harsh realty of what he endured (he & his Army buddies never discussed the hardships). In 1978, he gave a speech at Emory University about the liberation and that’s when I came to realize just what it took to make it through every day as a soldier, and just how horrific it was for the poor souls in those camps. I love Anne Frank’s words, “there is still beauty to be found in the world” –let’ all stay focused upon that truth. Hugs, sweet friend.
Dear Bobbi, do forgive me for taking a bit to respond to your heartfelt post. I didn’t want to answer you until I had time to read it again and reply sincerely. Your words are so true and you must be so very proud of your parents and grandparents. Yes, your grandfather would surely have been shot, God’s angels were certainly with him and those he was helping. Hopefully, you were able to attend the speech your father gave. I am certain he had many powerful things to say. Honestly, though I have read so much about these dark times, I know I can’t begin to imagine the horror so many endured.
Bobbi, my maiden name was Hahn. I know very little about my father or my grandparents. I have tried with little results to find out what I can about them. My interest is driven, not only because they were my family but because every Hahn I have ever met is Jewish. I have been told by my mother that my great grandparents came from the Hamburg region of Germany. All so interesting and I would also love to know why I am so drawn to France. I always believe there is a reason for these things.
I love both the quotes you mentioned. I am familiar with the quote by Anne Frank, but have never heard the first quote about the wind and sails. Both are so true.
We will make it through this next year and once the sun begins to shine again we will be proud of our accomplishments. I believe that in itself will help heal our nation’s wounds.
Wishing you and Mike a Happy New Year! Many blessings, dear one.❤
Sandra, thank you, sweetie, for taking the time to reread my comment before answering. I hope that you will be able to find information about your family. I so wish I had asked many more questions before my parents and grandparents passed. All of my mom’s side of the family were from Germany. Mom’s siblings were all much older as mom was a mid-life baby, so they’ve all passed. I never met any of my mom’s people, only letters and pictures that my mom shared w/ me. but they were all lost in a fire so I don’t even know one address or if any of the extended family are still living. From time to time, I get online trying to locate them. It’s sad that I will most likely never know any of them ( at least not here on Earth), nor they the family members here in the USA. It is strange and lovely that you & I seem to have many things in common but, like you, I believe “there is a reason for things”. I’m just thrilled that are paths have crossed and certainly hope we will meet face-to-face in the near future because I feel I have known you forever. Much love!
Dear Bobbi, so true about asking questions. I certainly wish I had done the same. I try also to search online sometimes, but it is hours of searching and often not knowing any more than when I began.
I, too, am so happy our paths have crossed and I truly feel it was intentional. Wishing you a lovely week, full of love and joy.❤
“May the angels walk beside you every step of your journey, in 2021“ perfect words and thoughts for entering this new year, and we will need an extra prayer to carry on with strength and resilience. Thank you so very much Sandra for always being a perfect “Shepherdess” in these tumultuous times. We need you dear heart.?
Dear Louise, thank you so much for your kind and lovely words. I also believe we will need extra prayers to carry us onward, but I am confident they are being sent by so many. I know we will make it through these difficult times and I also feel we will come through it as kinder people.
Louise, your friendship means a great deal to me and I am ever so grateful for you.
Happy New Year to you and your family! Many blessings, my friend.❤
Wishing you and Mike a Happy New Year! Thank you for the book recommendation, Butch and I have read countless historical fiction books surrounding the Holocaust. I am anxious to read this one!
Thanks, Pam. Happy New Year wishes to you as Butch as well. I do think you would enjoy the book. This one is a true story .