This year, I stayed in New York for New Year’s Eve.  I’ve visited lots of different places on New Years, hosted wonderful dinner parties on Nantucket and rung in most “new” with great friends.

“Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering, It will be happier.”                     Alfred Lord Tennyson

I love the start of a new year.  And celebrating at home means cooking the best recipes of the year, serving the best champagne I can find and watching the famous ball drop in Times Square.    I never tire of the midnight toasts and warm embraces of loved ones and friends.

But, like most holidays, I love to extend the celebration and make it last as long as possible.  In New York City, that’s easy.  In the days following New Year’s, a walk through the city at night presents a perfect opportunity to continue the holiday, by observing the beautiful street lights.

Taking an evening stroll through the city, brightens the early-dark-nights of the New Year.   I always make a point of exploring the side streets and avenues without a specific plan.  I love all kinds of walks, but the purpose of this one is simply to wander and observe.

It can be very rejuvenating to begin the new year by observing all of the beauty around you, no matter where you are.  Extend the bright hopes of a new year beyond the traditional New Year’s eve midnight celebrations!

Open your heart and mind to the hope that the year ahead will be filled with joy and the anticipation of all things possible.  And be sure to use any time on your own to explore, wander and enjoy every moment with all of your senses recharged!  That’s what starts a New Year right at “A Table For One.”

Copyright 2016 Marion M. O’Grady

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