The Best of Times and the Worst of Times

Have you ever had a year in which something happened which felt like the worst thing imaginable, followed by something which felt like the best thing ever?

I had a year like that in 1984. I was expecting my first child. My due date was March 8. My sister was due on February 4. These would be my beloved Nana’s first two great grandchildren. I couldn’t have been more excited. As my due date approached and my anticipation was building, disaster struck. My Nana died, suddenly and unexpectedly of a heart attack, on March 6th. Her funeral was set for March 8th and I was determined to go, even though the funeral was to be held a 3 hour drive away. We were all set to leave, when a show stopper happened. My water broke, so instead of driving to the funeral, we drove to the hospital. A few hours later, Martha was born! To say my feelings were mixed would be an understatement of huge proportions.

This year, 2023, was kind of like that for me. I lost a dear friend, suddenly and unexpectedly, to a heart attack which occurred on Father’s Day. His family and friends were devastated. But then, in the fall, I self published and released my fifth book, Fully Connected. I wrote to you about the experience of ‘giving birth’ to this new baby. The worst of times, then the best of times. These types of years are such an emotional roller coaster.

I bring this up to remind you of a resource I first blogged about on January 1, 2023. It’s called the Year Compass. It is a free resource available for you to download at www.yearcompass.com. I was looking for a way to process the events of this year, and I remembered how interesting and inspirational it was to move through the Year Compass procedure last year. I decided to do it early this year, and again, I found it be a meaningful and helpful experience. It’s a great process to help us review one year, then plan for the next one, perhaps especially when it’s been a very up and down year in your life. I highly recommend it!