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I caught this lovely lady waving as we came to Gympie on the rattler. I hope she will forgive me for posting this, but it is a bit blurred. However, it serves to say, Goodbye to 2020 and "Hello" 2021.

We all get a buzz in saying goodbye to something that has given us pain and grief, yet in the same moment we are saddened that we had to do this, or even that this is not yet done and dusted. We are complex in every way and our thinking patterns are sometimes confusing. For all of the world's population, we are happy to see a year go by and to have survived, even knowing that the year ahead may be just as difficult, or close to the previous year. However, we now know what we did in 2020, how we reacted to changes and shopping distancing, family distancing. In fact the whole year the buzz word was "distancing". Even last night at Redcliffe, where shops were buzzing with their wares (market), there was the formidable sign, Distancing 1.5 metres. This constantly reminded patrons to remember the problem lurking still.

Vaccines are on their way, governments are struggling to cope with demands and distraught citizens are fractured and broken.

How should we view this new year and can we cope with prolonged struggles with finances, family, lack of love and nurture and the constant reminders of how terrible the Covid has become?

I have found that when too many struggles emerge at once, it can break our hearts and our emotions become raw.

We can be like the Emu, bury our heads in the sand and forget the problems ahead. Or, we can be like the horse, who must rise again and jump that strange looking obstacle!

The Lord says, guard your heart, it is the wellspring of life. (proverbs) That is a serious matter.

We must guard our innermost thoughts (and sometimes they are overwhelming).

Having someone to talk to is sometimes helpful. I say "helpful" but know that nobody knows your exact solution only you and God. So, if nobody is present, speak to the Lord.

Or even to the cat or someone who is not present (human). It will help with the stress build up inside your soul (heart). We all need a sounding board and we can find our special one in a special place where we go.

Jesus went off into the night to pray, alone where he could be private and talk freely to God. We can do just that as I believe we all need to do that from time to time.

Look at the night sky. I noticed that the stars were shining brightly last night at Redcliffe. Nothing can diminish them.

Extra lights do take away some of their form, but we can still see them looking down from above, like a beautifully carved ceiling. Too far away to fall and hurt us and just far enough away to let us know we are actually not alone.

This world is the place designated by God, the creator for us to live and thrive. Sadly the world has problems, lots of problems, but nothing that cannot be solved with a little thought, a prayer, a talk or a scream! 

Or, just look and smell the beautiful flowers popping out at the moment. (Here anyway)

This year, I will make a informal resolution to be Kinder, helpful, obedient (to the difficult rules), and do do something new.

Make a cake, create a collage, or even write a book. That is what I will be doing.

I am also doing a study on a very heavy subject, history, and connecting the dots with Daniel Chapters 10, 11. It is mind-blowing and I may get it together well enough to publish my findings.

Last night, we had no fireworks in Redcliffe. We missed the early round (barely heard it) and waited until 10:15 PM when we went home.

But, today I had a most wonderful surprise, a face time with my beautiful sister, Jo, in Cyprus, and her family there (some of them).

It was just after midnight and they were eating... another fine thing to do this year. Eat something that you have never eaten. It gives you new memories to cover the old bad ones a bit.

Another thing to do: find humour in everyday things and words.