Grapes of Anticipation 2026

Happy New Year 2026!

This first day of the new year offers a blank slate. Yet I already have anticipated some milestones for this year that make me want to shout "Huzzah for 2026!"

Using the Spanish custom of 12 grapes as a guide, here's what I look forward to in this new year:

Grape #1: The USA means so much to me, and so I'm excited about celebrating the 250th anniversary of US independence.  It's a great time for "Huzzah!" to make a comeback.

Grape #2: The 2026 elections will be a good opportunity to engage with the process of government.

Grape #3: I've made plans to go on vacation for my birthday again, and celebrate with my birthday partner James Madison at his Montpelier estate in Virginia.

Grape #4: I look forward to what I'll get to experience during this year's annual family Washington, D.C., Metro Area trip.

Grape #5: It's going to be a good time getting our kicks as we celebrate the centennial of Route 66, along with the other US federal routes.

Grape #6: I get great vibes when it comes to Colorado and my family there, so I'm looking forward to celebrating the 150th Anniversary of Colorado on August 1.

Grape #7: I'm excited to celebrate the centennial of actor Andy Griffith's birth.

Grape #8: As a huge Lucy fan, I'm excited about celebrating the 75th anniversary of the debut of I Love Lucy, which follows up from last year's 75th anniversary of the establishment of Desilu.  I think now's a good time to bring back the expression "Real gone", for that which is amazing.

Grape #9: I can think of two family milestones for this year, my brother and sister-in-law's 10th anniversary and the centennial of my Great Aunt June's birth.

Grape #10: I'm looking forward to the 10th anniversary of my MLIS graduation on May 8 and reflecting on my role in librarianship.

Grape #11: 2024 was an inspiring time of connecting with the Eucharistic Lord with the National Eucharistic Congress and the National Eucharistic Pilgrimages.  I'm glad that there was a pilgrimage in 2025 and plans for another pilgrimage in 2026, which I'll be following.

Grape #12: The US bishops voted to consecrate the USA to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in celebration of the 250th anniversary of US independence.  I'm sure this will be a graced time to encounter the unseen God Who makes Himself marvelously known in the love He shows us and for that love to abound in our lives and all we do day by day, even in our part as citizens.  I hope it will continue to provide a point of inspiration as I seek to make God's love known, including in my involvement at Church, especially in Religious Education.  I've built so many good relationships, and I look forward to how I'll continue building them.

So I offer a prayer that God will bless the United States of America.  And may we all, during 2026, open ourselves to the ways we can live purposefully through the graces God bestows on us throughout the ages for how we can live in this moment in which God has placed us.

Huzzah for the USA! Huzzah for 2026!