Greetings!

To all of you from South Africa to Great Britain

to the far-flung states of the Northwest and California

to Canada and Florida,

the Southwest and the Midwest,

Boston and Cleveland,

and all the toasty homes in between,

I wish you a Chanukah filled to brimming with merriment,

a Christmas heart-deep in peace,

a Boxing Day sparkled with laughter,  

a Kwanzaa candlelit by joy,

and a year’s ending

that finds you content

with your life and its gifts.

Ellie, Maggie, and Matthew

have asked me to convey their gratitude to all of you.

Now that I’ve joined the family of bloggers,

I no longer disturb their naps with play.

For this, they give thanks

even as they hunker by the patio doors,

gnashing their teeth and chirruping

at winter birds and squirrels feasting on sunflower seeds.

Those three hoodlums,

one snoopy as a young sleuth,

join me in wishing you a new year filled

with possibilities for growth in the human spirit.

May you enter the new year merrily

and come to its end in good health,

your lives enriched with friendship

and your spirits enfolded

in the Holy Oneness of All Creation.

You and I,
the three felines observing me type,

and all your cherished animals
are part of that Oneness.
We are the essence of One.

Peace as ever and always.

Amen.

I hope this photograph, from twenty-five years ago, conveys the joy I feel today from having met so many engaging bloggers this year. Thank you for your ongoing support, and thank you, too, for reading this blog so faithfully. Your comments and encouragement have lifted my spirits during a difficult year.        

           Finally, thank all of you who have ordered A Cat’s Life: Dulcy’s Story. Your meeting Dulcy for the first time is a great gift to me. Let there be, for all of us, joy in the morning.