As 2021 starts to close down, now post Christmas and pre New Year’s eve, I find the need to look back for a little bit.

The year started in the midst of the ongoing pandemic, with the glint of hope that a solid vaccine was near…that turned out to be true…Both Sue and I were able to get our first set of shots in mid January with the second in mid February. We felt invincible at that point, and that a corner had been turned. Sue had fully retired from GHS and we were looking a bit ahead to a return to living the lives we had long thought about. Masks seemed to be a think of the past in many settings, indoor dining was again an option and plans were in discussion for a twice put off major trip with “the gang”. We put our almost 20 year home up for sale, it sold in a flash, and looked toward fulfilling my long dream of moving to a year round warmer climate. We bought, sight unseen, a new construction home in the cute little town (well, formerly little, it is blowing up like crazy with us northern boomers coming down) of Bluffton, SC managed to make a relatively seamless move [no move is truly seamless, but with the proverbial blessings of hindsight even the hiccups were mostly minor] and have been enjoying the newness of it all. Today, as I write this, it was a sun drenched 79 degree day after Christmas…Abbey and I took a 42 minute stroll and I loved it. We have even made a new friend, who joined us for Christmas dinner, and we’ve met a few of the other folks living in the still under construction new Lakes at New Riverside, community, all seemingly very nice.

Not that everything was roses this year, we have, like most folks, especially folks “our age” experienced significant personal loss. The first, for me, was Burton Zaretsky. We had connected a few years ago when he had asked me to write some pieces for a newsletter he produced for his son in law Dr. Neil Floch, who was my bariatric surgeon helping me regain my health. We became more than simply correspondents, though physically good old Covid, kept us apart. We shared a love of the ocean and growing up spending summers on it, on what was known then as the “workingman’s riviera”. He actually became quite the sounding board and I would send him my blog posts as I wrote them even thought many had nothing to do with the pieces I was writing for him. I always looked forward to his comments as he would reply fairly quickly. We could not have been further apart politically, but it never mattered, we were able to share ideas and discuss all things beyond politics including music which we both loved. He had me by about 14 years, so our musical discussions were frequently learning experiences for both of us. We were both making plans to share a kick ass steak dinner and an amazing wine at Prime in Stamford, as soon as he was fully vaxed since it seemed like it was all clear at that point, Then one day the unthinkable happened. I had sent him a blog post and after a week I had not heard from him, never had even 24 hours passed without a reply, one, as I said, I always looked forward to (and which frequently resulted in even more exchanges). So after another week had passed I reached out to his son in law and got news that was even worse than I was anticipating…He had passed. He wanted to keep his illness (not covid) quiet and the family was making no public announcement. I was devastated. Here was a man I had only met twice for a few passing minutes in Neil’s office, but someone who for reasons that make almost no sense, became more than a friend.

Then, in March, Sue’s dad, Dave “The Earl of Haddam” Sloan, someone who we had only seen twice in the past 12 months (once from only outside the house), started to gently, but quickly slide. He passed peacefully with his family around him. Here was someone who started out simply as “sue’s dad” who also became as much a father and a friend as anyone could hope. Like Burt, we could not have been further apart politically (the cause of many quips and jokes) but spending time with him was always joyful. He could discuss anything, he loved ideas, and was the best listener. Like Burt, we were a generation apart in many ways, he loved Opera, I love Bruce Springsteen. However, I would listen to him talk about opera and how he enjoyed it and guess what…I started to listen more closely and now cannot hear “Nessun Dorma” without having it raise goosebumps. He patiently sat and listened to the entirety of Bruce’s “Jungleland” and was equally appreciative of Clarence’s sax solo. So much so that when I had mentioned, in passing, that I had read and enjoyed Bruce’s autobiography, he asked if he could borrow it. He read it with the same fervor he read the Quran, because he wanted to learn about something that was unfamiliar. He would occasionally call me just to discuss certain parts of it, that’s how wide open his mind was and how curious he was about everything.

The year comes to a close with both sadness and joy. I miss my friends, but they are never far from my thoughts and my memory…

Which brings me back to the title….Kā lā hiki ola…as I was reading something I discovered it was the hawaiian phrase for “Each Day Is Brand New” and it’s used to remind us that each new day should breed hope and optimism. It serves as motivation to move forward and take advantage of each new beginning. As I look back on the year and remember the joys I can’t help but also remember the losses, however, I think the lessons learned from both of those mentioned gentlemen were exactly that…Each day is a new beginning never fail to look ahead with joy.

Tonight we will raise a glass to both my friends…