by Curt Kovener
As the Times takes a much needed holiday break, Some of your we will be with to see in the new year, but for those with whom we will not be with in person, we will be there in spirit.
Never an old year passes, Never a new year begins that someone doesn’t think of somone: Old Days…Old Times…Old Friends.
So this New Year’s Eve, please lift your glass of spirits for a toast:
May your hair, your teeth, your face-lift, your abs and your stocks not fall; and may your blood pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol, your white blood count and your mortgage interest not rise.
May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your cardiologist, your gastro-endocrinologist, your urologist, your proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber and the IRS.
May you find a way to travel from anywhere to anywhere in the rush hour in less than an hour, and when you get there May you find a parking space.
May December 31 find you seated around the dinner table, together with your family and cherished friends, ushering in the New Year ahead. You will find the food better, the environment quieter, the cost much cheaper, and the pleasure much more fulfilling than anything else you might ordinarily do that night.
May you wake up on January 1, finding that the world has not come to an end, the lights work, the water faucets flow, and the sky has not fallen.
May you go to the bank on January 2nd and find your account is in order, your money is still there and any mistakes are in your favor.
May you ponder in the new year; How did this ultramodern civilization of ours manage to get itself traumatized by a possible slip of a blip on a chip made out of sand.
May we all have the strength to go through a year of presidential campaigning, and may some of the promises made be kept. May you believe at least half of what the candidates propose, and may those elected fulfill at least half of what they promise. And the may you finally understand that miracle of reducing taxes and balancing budgets will not happen.
May what you see in the mirror delight you, and what others see in you delight them.
May you remember to say “I love you” at least once a day to your spouse, your child, your parent; but not to your secretary, your nurse, your masseuse, your hairdresser or your tennis instructor.
May we live as intended, in a world at peace and the awareness of the beauty in every sunset, every flower’s unfolding petals, every baby’s smile and every wonderful, astonishing, miraculous beat of our heart.