Where I live, we’ve hit the time of year when nights are long and days are all to brief. And in Ohio, the sun doesn’t shine often enough to suit me.

A friend invited me to go see her on the Gulf of America and I’m thinking about how great that could be. My best winters were in Florida where I never experienced being snowed in, and could grill outside without a coat, and the beach was never closed. Even in my gloomiest mood, the soul brightening sun still shone.

The book I’m currently writing had me dragging out photographs from the distant past. I’m always surprised how a simple snapshot can take me back in time and start the memories like a video. I can still see people who were there, off camera. A picture can take me right back into the middle of it all. Sifting through my past has taken me to some interesting places. Studying 500 years of family genealogy helped me see with more clarity who I am, who I can become, and the people I came from. The past has been a useful tool. Late fall and early winter have always been a deeply reflective time for me.

I’ve journaled for a long time now, and rereading the recent year’s entries helps me remember what went wrong and what went right. It helps me chart the changes I might pursue to make next year even better. It helps me notice where I got bogged down and how I worked though it. This year was about seeing where I failed, increasing my awareness of my interactions, and repairing relationships. Taking the time to reflect has been an enormous help in correcting my trajectory. In the last five years, that process been different without having my husband as a sounding board. We were perfect for each other. I challenged him as much as he challenged me.

I miss that.

It’s been a while since I took a vacation. I haven’t seen the Gulf of America. And I can always use a few more shells.

What do you want more of in your life? What would make your next year a happier one? What lessons did you learn from this last year? Thanks for hanging out with me this year. I hope to see you in the next one.