Daily Meditation for January 1, 2025

Tinsel is returning as a Christmas tree decoration. Yay for glitter and shine! After Christmas, evergreen trees give testimony to the celebrations as they take charge of driveway entrances and snowbanks (if enough snow has fallen) to be collected. Slips of tinsel dangling from the branches look lonely and sad to be neglected and disposable. They have served their purpose. Some are saved for another year and some are discarded along with the tree. As a metaphor, parts of our lives are tinsel. They attract and delight us. Might the beginning of 2025 remind us to give thanks for them and appreciate those that linger? Might we know that some of what gives us happiness is time-bound and open to losing its luster? Might January invite us to evaluate what is glitter and what is at the heart of our true joy? Good news: then we receive opportunities to choose.

By Mary Reuter, OSB