New Year's Day 2016

Every year, for as long as I can remember, members of my family have gathered on New Year's Day for a meal and quality time together at my Uncle Russell and Aunt Flora's. My aunt and uncle work hard to transform their living room into a long row of tables to accommodate the growing group.

For me, it is one of my favorite times of year. When we gather there is a ton of laughter, lots of food, football on the TV, and stories both old and new being shared and made. I snapped the photo above while listening to my dad and his three living brothers share stories from their childhood and some of their adventures together. Looking at the photo I found myself thinking about the fact that when these guys get together, there is nearly 300 years of wisdom and experience in the room. And these guys are all really healthy and filled with joy. I try to savor every moment and learn as much as I can from these men. They have each led an incredibly full and richly blessed life.

This year was a little different for me and Jamie. We drove to Lake Floyd on New Year's Eve, watched a movie with Jamie's parents, and watched the old year fold into the new. By the time we woke, Jamie's dad had already completed his first workout of the year, and over breakfast, he shared the details of what he thought was one of the hardest workouts he had done in quite some time.

After a quick breakfast, we headed out to Parkersburg for New Year's dinner at Russ and Flora's, but not without first stopping by my dad's to surprise him and travel with him. My Uncle Bill stopped by too, so we were all able to travel together. There's something really fun about a car full of family making a journey no matter how short the distance. It also meant we wouldn't fill up all of the parking places, and we could be good stewards of our limited resources, and the environment. :)

After a day full of food, fun, football, and fantastic stories, we helped with the cleanup and restoration of Russ and Flora's living room before making our way back to my dad's to call it a day. And what a day it was! I am hopeful that 2016 will be an incredible year--it certainly started well.

May we all have a year filled with family and friendship, laughter and love, and stories and service.