Grapes of Anticipation 2024

Happy New Year's Greetings! Welcome 2024!

We're back a the blank slate state of mind.  It's a good time to ponder what's ahead.

Using the Spanish custom of eating 12 grapes for the New Year as a guide, I shall continue my established custom on my blog to look ahead in 2024.

#1: I'm eager to follow the news about the total solar eclipse in April, and I'm aiming to see it myself.

#2: I look forward to another trip to Washington, D.C., with lots of great sightseeing, which is usually guaranteed there.

#3: I'm excited about seeing the world come together again for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, and to see what the opening ceremony will look like along the Seine River.

#4: I look forward to celebrating Grandpa Martin's 100-year birth on January 17 and even beyond.  (And in the spirit of family, I'm looking forward to getting to know the new dog in the family, Marshall.)

#5: Even despite the current sociopolitical environment, I am ready to contribute my part in the democratic process of the Republic of the USA by casting my vote for the next president.

#6: I intend to join fans in marking the retirement of two big TV personalities, Tom Skilling and Pat Sajak.

#7: I plan to follow up on the recent 10th anniversary of my trip to St. Augustine Mission and ValpU graduation anniversaries, since the calendar for 2024 after March 1 will align with 2013.

#8: I'm ready to take advantage of an extra day this year on Leap Day, even to reflect on my path in life since the last Leap Day in 2020.

#9: The Saints podcast series on by the Merry Beggars was such a meaningful experience week after week starting in September, and I'm excited to hear what comes next.

#10: It's also an election year for the presidency of Mexico, and I plan to follow the news of it.

#11: I'm looking ahead to participating in the upcoming events of the Eucharistic Revival, including the pilgrimages, and then the culmination event, the Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, which shall hopefully be a significantly transformative event in the life of the Church in the USA.

#12: Confirmations have been an uplifting experience for me over the past 10 years, and I'm looking forward to accompanying young people to that sacramental encounter, and to see which Bishop will preside and what he'll say in his homily.

Aware of how God, Who is beyond time, works so marvelously in our times, I step forth into a new year, commending it to His grace, by which I find purpose.