I’ve often felt a little disillusioned by New Year’s Eve celebrations. The optimism felt forced, the measuring of the planet’s orbit arbitrary. But I’ve come to appreciate the symbolic new start—forced or not, arbitrary or not—as an opportunity for reflection and imagination. What did I learn this year? How did I grow? What are my dreams for the future?
Two new Voices columns reflect back on important personal moments from the year. Sam Wells recalls his experience of a brief, chaotic episode of theft—and the lessons he gleaned about God from each character in the microdrama. Alejandra Oliva considers her word for the year 2024 (monasticism) and how a busy week in a cabin with friends surprisingly captured the spirit of that word for her. In case you missed the news, 2024 will also go down in history books as the year of Jimmy Carter’s death; we have a tribute to “America’s best ex-president” from Randall Balmer.
Our video of the week features Lesley Finn, who tells me more about the story from her recent CC essay: her son’s hilarious mixup of Jesus and a character from the Frosty the Snowman movie. Plus scroll down for even more great new content.
“This was what I had wanted: rest and work, community and solitude, a life that could hold it all within the contours and limitations of the everyday.”
“I imagine that my daughter lives in that house, or that she is the light— / because I don’t know what shape a soul might take / or how messages are sent from another world.”
