Happy, happy New Year!

The new year is a time for new beginnings. And a time for making resolutions. As for me, I used to dutifully write down my resolutions. They were quickly forgotten by mid-January.

So now I do something different. I focus on a particular word for the year. In the past it has been words like “gratitude” and “friendship.” This is much easier for me to achieve.

This year my word is “nature.” Being out in nature has always been my happy place, whether it’s kayaking or hiking.

The new year got off to a brilliant start since Mr. Ken and I went hiking at our favorite spot. This is also where we kayak.

Here is our dear Mr. Ken, looking like the experienced hiker he is. Notice the expanse of ice behind him.

One of the many things I love about being in nature is that I always notice something different every time I am outside. Even if I am at the same place I’ve been many times before.

This time we saw two canoers busily chopping their way through the ice. Um, what???? First of all, neither one had on a life vest. Come on people, this is New England and even though the air temperature was 50, the water is frozen and really, really cold underneath all that ice. Plus, the entire lake was frozen so I am not sure what they were trying to achieve. Maybe getting out in the canoe was one of their New Year’s resolutions.

What do you do for the New Year?