As the year winds down

Bare trees reach to a grey sky

As the year winds down to its close
And we are submerged once again
In the seasonal darkness we have come to know so well,
We have reason to think back upon the year that was,
If only because it will soon be gone.
We think back to the friends we have made,
The sorrow we have endured
The love we have found
The loneliness we have survived.
We think back to the blessings of being forgiven
And the gift we offered to ourselves when we forgave.
We think back to those who listened to us in our times of need
And the times we could have listened more.
We think back to the things we traded for our time
And to what we may have overlooked in the process.
We think back to the times when we were afraid and uncertain and we trudged ahead anyway, and the times when we were compassionate when we could have been cold.
In this season of still-growing night
May we see more clearly
Against the dark backdrop of our living
The true light of our lives:
The love we give to others
And the peace we nurture in ourselves.