Through the good and lean years and through all the in-between years…is a line from Frank Sinatra’s hit tune All the Way. I looked through the archives of my posts and saw that my final post of 2012 was a blow-by-blow recap of that year in review for my life. Not a bad post for one titled The In-Between Years but it seems like such a long time ago in a land far away from where I am today. A year can fly past in a hurry and yet, the passage of time, regardless of our perception of its speed, never leaves us unchanged.
I rarely “mix” blogs, but I want to quote The Red Man’s opinion of 2013 in his final December, 2012 post. He has such a way with words.
I’m not sure what my plans are for the New Year, but I don’t like the sound of 2013. It’s an odd-numbered year, and I don’t accept odd-numbered years as authentic. I would prefer to have all even-numbered years. So we’d skip 2013 and go right on to 2014 and then 2016 and so on. You get the picture.
Yes, Red Man, I do get the picture and you are a prophet in your own ‘Hood. 2013 was one of those lean years Frank Sinatra sang about. To tell the truth, the bad so outweighed the good I won’t bother to review it. The better news is it’s finally coming to a close and 2014 is just around the next Bowl Game.
I was talking to a cousin who called me on Christmas Day to wish me a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I appreciated the call and the visit we had. The thousand miles that separated us couldn’t break the ties that bind us.
We were talking about the vicissitudes of life, as my daddy used to call them, and Gaylen who has spent over forty years hanging out with cowboys at rodeos told me one of their favorite quotes: The horse you draw is the one you’ll ride.
I like it. No apologies. No excuses. No whining about why did I get this horse. No wondering about whether this rodeo was one I should’ve signed up for. No mulling over how I ever got to be a cowboy in the first place. It’s now or it’s never – so you ride.
I have hope for 2014 along with The Red Man who loves even-numbered years and am optimistic that I will be a better person in the New Year. I can’t control the rodeos around me, but I have been reminded I can still ride.
I hope the horses you draw in 2014 will be ones you’ll want to ride.
Teresa and I wish you all a Happy New Year from our family to yours!
I'll Call It Like I See It 
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Beautifully said! 5-5, 5-5
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Thanks so much, Brenda! Some years the rides are harder than others, but we hang in there. I hope 2014 will be a good one for you and your family. 5-5, 5-5
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Wow – One Star equals Very Poor so evidently one reader feels I am daring to be inept. Oh, well.
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Sheila, you know me well enough to recall I have several email addresses for nefarious, er, personal reasons. 😉 Each one contains a signature line – a sign off for the season, a mini lesson, an observation, a wish. This morning, for one, I chose:
“Hope
Smiles from the threshold of the year to come,
Whispering, “it will be happier” …
-Alfred, Lord Tennyson
It will be happier, better, or so we hope. The Red Man is a wise terrier, according to one Miss Poppy Seed, and his theory about odd/even years is the best I’ve ever heard. The Red Man is always right!
Guess we’ll ride our horses into 2015 “come what may.”
Ma and the Brat Pack wish you, Teresa, and the 3 Musketeers a very Happy, Healthy, Healing New Year!
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Ann,
I absolutely LOVE the Tennyson quote! Honestly, I am so glad you wrote that for me…I will come back to it and enjoy it many times.
I do see hope smiling on the threshold of this new year and will cling to it!
The Red Man is rarely wrong – that is both his endearing and annoying character. 🙂
Casa de Canterbury has enjoyed your Annie and Ollie portraits very much during this holiday season – they have gotten rave reviews from family and friends who’ve visited!
Bless you all.
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Thank you for letting me know the paintings are hits with family and friends! 🙂
A little red dog told us you have an excursion coming up. Scream your throats raw and otherwise ENJOY a well deserved treat.
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I’ll definitely be staying home this year for New Year. My wish for you and yours is that yall have a happy and healthy 2014. Love you both and your children too. By the by at your age you should stay off of any horses.
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