2023 Year In Pictures And A Few Words

I don’t know really where to start with this one. We used to go to great lengths to create just the right end-of-year holiday message (for those who remember the decades of classic Grael Non-traditional, Non-denominational Holiday Greetings). Those messages spanned eras and were an outlet for us to simply keep some people in the loop over the course of the previous 12 months on happenings and events. We also told some pretty stupid stories along the way. 

We’ve been more quiet lately. Maybe purposely, maybe accidentally, maybe lazily, or maybe simply because what once was doesn’t always have to be what is. Change is life and I’ve always been a fan of entropy. Chaos killed the dinosaurs. 

Anyway, it’s been a few years since we took the time to write and document during the holiday season, and there is no way I will be going back to the ways of old. Instead, I thought we would reduce the year into a few simple thoughts. Here we go…let’s see how this works out.

First, our loose goal for the year was to get to a place where we actually believe the journey is the destination. You always hear it, but we want to feel it. So, we journeyed…up the coast of Portugal and through western Spain, criss-crossing the Pyrenees between Spain and France, and through the Dolomites in Italy and Austria, not to forget some random traipsing through Tuscany, Paris and Champagne, and more too numerous to list. Long distance hiking has become a thing for us and is definitely leading us to believe the journey is what matters. Well, that, and really good footwear, sunscreen, protein smoothies, and hot showers. 

Next, for a little self reflection, it turns out we’re not dead inside as had been suspected. Instead, I think we might be victims of our own experience. We’ve been to a lot of places over the years and done an astounding number of things. And, I guess because of that, certain things don’t wow much anymore. I mean, I don’t really need to see another church, do I? In the past, I would’ve attributed that to being dead inside – not seeing the amazing all around us – but now I think it’s just a matter of life being as it always is. Life. And, we need to start being thankful for what we do rather than what we don’t…what life is instead of what it isn’t. There’s still really cool shit out there. We just need to go find it and be open to appreciating more and different aspects of our world. One thing is for certain, though, and that is we never tire of being out in nature. 

Needless to say, the weight of the world continues to crash down on most of us in one way or another. Health issues, politics, economy, ecology, uncertainty, and more. We’ve seen friends and family deal with and suffer from some pretty dark stuff this year. Some have flourished and some have faltered. And, we’ve lost some who were truly dear to us. Throughout it all, I’m just like a little spiritual truffle pig rooting around in the muck for meaning, genuineness, and sincerity. We have fleeting moments of lucidity when we realize that freedom and peace come from not placing emotional weight and value on opinions and statements made by people who you don’t respect, who don’t know us, and whose intentions are not positive. 

Cheers to everyone we have seen this year and with whom we have shared time. For those we have lost, we are comforted that the pain is over and that love and memories are everlasting.