Each year, for several decades, Tim and I have spent New Year’s Eve quietly celebrating all the things, large and small, that went right in the year just past. We light a candle, pour a glass of something celebratory, put on some music, and free-associate along a tangent of recent joy. There are always so many things to notice. You know me, always with a pen and legal pad at the ready, and so I write each memory down in the order that it occurs to us. And then? Yes! I save the lists. Always, we find three or four single-spaced pages of things to notice and savor afresh. For this reason, New Year’s Eve has become one of my favorite days of the whole year.

Many people use New Year’s Day to form resolutions for the year ahead. We do something akin to that on the first day of each fresh year, but we call it “Setting Intentions.” And, for us, flowing out from a time of concentrated and shared gratitude, it feels a bit more gentle and achievable than my once-upon-a-time, somewhat draconian attempts to charge into (not-always-sustainable) efforts of improvement.

What New Year’s traditions do you observe? What are you looking forward to in the year ahead? Are there new things you aim to achieve? And what are you grateful for in the year just past? I would love it if you would share your thoughts.

And as we head into 2026, please accept my very best wishes for good spirits and good health! May life grant you your heart’s desire–and surprise you with delights as-yet undreamt!

LESLIE