Leave the garbage behind. And let it snow!

This is from a prayer book by Alice Camille (and shared with me by Bernadette Hardesty). It is very good advice for the coming New Year. - “It would be a tragedy beyond mere death should any of us take the garbage of the old year and dump it into the living space of the new one.  The past deserves to be put in its place, where it belongs, in the sacred files of reconciliation.  So when you turn that new page for 2015, do it like you mean it!  You've got a new page.  Start fresh.  Issue blanket amnesty to all offenders.  Say "I'm sorry."  Say “Thank you.”  Say your prayers.  And in the name of all that is holy, wherever there are differences, by God, let it snow.”  Leave the garbage of the old year behind, whether these be hurt feelings, resentments, or disappointments. And let the snow cover all that divides us and blanket it in the oneness of God’s love and grace. Let it snow! - - - Fr. Jim