I have heard the week between Christmas and New Year referred to as twilight week. It’s as if it is a suspended time of quiet transition, acting as a pause between the festive rush and the year’s end, marked by reflection, relaxed routines, family connection and anticipation for the future, offering grace and a chance to simply be before the hustle of the new year begins.

It’s a period where the world slows down, allowing for naps, reading, woodland walking, sea glass hunting, life planning and appreciating fleeting moments before resolutions and new goals take center stage.

At its heart, ringing in the New Year is an opportunity for reflection and renewal. It’s a time when we take the opportunity to evaluate the past year — its triumphs and challenges — and look forward with restored purpose. Celebrations may vary — home quietly by the fire or out on the town sipping champagne — but share common threads of joy and anticipation. It’s a time to share food, stories and good wishes. This collective experience transcends cultures, uniting people in a universal expression of hope for better days and brighter futures.

There are a few outliers to twilight week that seem to meet the criteria of merriment, reflection and renewal. Having an opportunity to join Scott McDowell and Annette Cingle at the Copperworks to make Christmas ornaments while sharing warm cider, a few nibbles, positive sentiment and some lovely company is a highlight during holiday crunch time. I am grateful they open their doors and include my family in the festivities.

I am not a churchgoer, but Kathie’s Christmas wish is to attend the candlelight service at the Chilmark Church with family so, each year we go and take up space in the last pew. Somehow the simplicity of being in a building constructed in 1843, lit by candlelight and surrounded by community members singing carols, is surprisingly awe inspiring. The ringing of the bell in the steeple as people depart somehow acts as an auditory actor transforming simple sound in to a profound, lingering message of belonging and hope for a positive future.

The Ruimerman household was hustling and bustling with the presence of granddaughter Maria. Her parents Andrew and Kimberly were also present, but as we all know parents only play a small supporting role when there is a toddler on stage. They made the drive from western Virginia and coordinated with Andrew’s brother Pete and his significant other, Anna Burt, to all be in house together. Janet and Tom were ear to ear smiles.

Not only did I have an opportunity to gather with the Ruimerman crowd, but I had the pleasure of soaking up a little love from Bella Thorpe who made a short visit home from her studies in Tennessee. To see her excited about her studies, happy in her surroundings and laughing with cousin Brooks as they have done together since infancy brought me joy. I am guessing her mom Julie Flanders felt that same unspoken joy as we quietly watch from the sidelines.

Chris Fielder is healing up well after sustaining a complex leg fracture. The past three months have been filled with hospital stays, physical therapy, trips back and forth to Boston, intense card games, riveting movies and more. She’s moving well with her walker and is feeling like she’s being held back which is a sure sign that the light at the end of the tunnel is shining brighter and life will be back to normal-ish soon.

Claire Ganz and Tom Singer made a trip to Virginia as well to see their also toddling granddaughter Cora. It was a bit of a whirlwind coordinating the dropping off and picking up of Claire’s mom Ann in Washington, DC, but it worked out according to plan. Cora was wrapped in familial love.

Billie Hancock had the pleasure of grandson Christian’s and daughter Buffy’s company for a week at her home in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Billie’s heart is always bursting with joy when family arrives in town.

As the calendar turns, the arrival of January presents us with a universal, unspoken gift: a fresh start, a clean slate, and the potent infusion of hope. I look forward to more visits, more stories and more conversations with all of you. Cheers to the positivity 2026 will bring.