Bonne année !

It's been a sluggish start to the new year here. In spite of bright, clear, and mild days, my body seems to think we are in the arctic, and that hibernating is the best coping strategy.

So, it's a little late for a New Year's post, but let's just pretend that it's the 1st of January, and that I am busily putting away holiday decorations and planning the year ahead as I report on our New Year's celebration. We will ignore the actual date and pretend that our  tree is not still up and begging to be put back in its box.

So, New Year's celebration...we spend New Year's Eve at our church where usually around forty of us gather for an amazing feast. There are always copious amounts of food and this year our table needed Anna's help finishing off the shrimp appetizer. She didn't mind.

Before midnight, we gather in the sanctuary for songs, prayers, and a short message. When it's midnight, it's time to faire la bise, and wish everyone a bonne année. In additon to just wishing a happy new year, many people will pronounce some kind of blessing, like, "May God bless you with...and give you...this year." It is sweet and lovely, and my response in past years has been a heartfelt smile and a very lame, "...et toi aussi," (not to be confused with the latin et tu muttered by Julius Cesar when betrayed by Brutus). Et toi aussi means, "and you too." Anyway, seriously, seriously lame.

So this year, as I took my December 31st afternoon nap, I thought about what I would like to say to people, partly not to be lame, and mostly because I really appreciate my friends and would to express something other than, "Back atch'ya," on what is a special occasion here.

In the end, I decided to say, "May the joy of the Lord be your strength." In French, "que la joie du Seigneur soit ta force."

If  I manage to resist hibernating these next days, I have plenty to write about...but if you don't hear from me, I'm sure I'll be back once Spring rolls around.