Happy New Year

This song seemed like an odd choice for my internal ipod to shuffle onto while I was brushing my teeth tonight. After all, it's not New Year's yet. But as I found myself singing these lyrics:

Happy new year

Happy new year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend

Happy new year

Happy new year

May we all have our hopes, our will to try

If we don't we might as well lay down and die

You and I

It began to seem more apropos. You see, tonight is the last night that my kids and I will all sleep in our current home. As a result, we are feeling a mix of excitement and sadness. I found myself consoling my son earlier, and explaining that life is filled with mixed-bags -- when we say goodbye to something or someone, we lose something, and this can be extremely painful. But we also gain something, immediately, and that's space for something new.

Maybe that's what these Swedes are singing about here? Kinda sorta?

Sometimes I see

How the brave new world arrives

And I see how it thrives

In the ashes of our lives

Oh yes, man is a fool

And he thinks he'll be okay

Dragging on, feet of clay

Never knowing he's astray

Keeps on going anyway...

But I think my favorite thing about this song coming to me is the harbinger that this new year in this new house is going to be happy, and it's going to involve lots of new neighbor friends. And so, we welcome this transition to our new space, a home that, among other perks, holds more space for others to enjoy along with us:

Happy new year

Happy new year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend...