At the Gate of the Year Once Again

As 2015 draws to a close, I've been thinking about the adventures we experienced during this year.

2015 was the year of emergency room visits.  I have pictures on my phone that document the head injuries Lacy received during the year.

This was the year I began to see the effects of aging on my body:  A broken toe and knee surgery kept me sidelined for nearly 6 months.

2015 was the year that we realized Lacy needed to be in a nursing home.

This was the year that God again showed His mercy and grace.  We were given wisdom in selecting a nursing home.  The fears we had about the transition were never realized.  Lacy is doing very well.

2015 was the year of advancements in the quest for a treatment or cure for HD.  New drug trials are very promising.  There will be a cure.

The new year holds the unknown.  We have no idea what is ahead of us.  None of us has a crystal ball to see what is coming.   Thank God we do not know.  We would worry and stress about what we cannot change.  Moving toward the new year of 2016, I have found myself silently reciting a portion of my father's favorite New Year's poem:

"The Gate of the Year"

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: 

"Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown!"

And he replied:

"Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God.

That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way."

So, I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night

And He led me toward the hills, and the breaking of day in the lone East.

                                                                                                     ~ Minnie Louise Haskins


This is my prayer for all of us who tread into the New Year.  God has prepared the way.

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