Happy belated birthday, kassrachel! Your friendship and encouragement mean a lot to me.

Hastily drafted (where does the time go!?), but heartfelt nonetheless:

Season

At this turn of the year, we are greedy for light
in the way that those who have dined too long
on heavy blandness crave the brightness
of unadorned salt and feathery sauces.

At this stretch of the year, we stubbornly sink
our teeth into all we can chew, no matter
how unpalatable the blessings sometimes remain
and how difficult they can be to swallow.

At this spin of the year, we count our candles
and all of the suns and the stars that command
our gifts of witness and our celebrations of choices:
here's to your new year. Here's to rejoicing.

With love,
Peg

Happy birthday, dorotea! May your day and year contain appropriate quantities of both beauty and wickedness. :-)