A new year deserves a poem.

New Year

The first day of the new year
The sun shines brightly 
The chorus of birds sounds. 

What will this year bring?
I wonder sitting here
Hoping for the best, of course. 

Knowing no certainty can there be
The good mixing with the bad
Joyful moments interlaced with pain. 

One step after the other
Pausing for breaks
Resting when needed. 

Then forging ahead
Finding the next ‘sparkling moment’
Examining it carefully. 

For in the peaks
Evidence of the troughs appear
All of life connected. 

Uncertainty an element of life
That most of us would miss
If all became too bland. 

And yet, at times predictably 
Is a strong desire 
A need for order common. 

One thing is certain, though
Surprises there will be
As, again, the curtain lifts. 

Brian Matthews, 1-1-24