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At midnight December 31, 2021, we will be wishing friends and family Happy New Year 2022! It's so hard to believe that we have lived through another year of a pandemic after having hoped we would really be on the road to recovery by now. However, vaccines did allow us to gather with those we love and get 'back to church' for a short while, and we must trust that it will indeed happen again. There is so much to be hopeful for! 

There has been good news for us here in Glen Morris in 2021, as we saw our Phase 3 Renovation realized so beautifully. And although we have not yet had a 'grand re-opening' we know too that when we do, it will be a blockbuster! Yes, we definitely have some fundraising left to do so stay tuned for information in this regard.

When we couldn't meet in person, we gathered online weekly on zoom. And as we began with a half hour of coffee time before worship, we were able to see each other's smiling - and frequently laughing - faces and it was reassuring to have that kind of contact. In October, we began to reopen and soon to full capacity, with Covid19 protocols in place. How wonderful to hear the choir and raise our voices in song! And with our new tech pieces in place, we no longer needed paper bulletins, but enjoyed viewing it all on slide shows on our big screen tvs while we continued to live broadcast to those at home. We had waited so long to meet in that little stone church, it felt like coming home to many. Being hopeful we were there to stay, things changed in December with the Omicron variant, causing us to close again.

Amidst these closing and reopenings, the Reopening Committee made the decision to present a mandatory vaccination policy, concerned that a large majority of our attendees were at an 'at risk' age, needing our care and protection.

Very difficult news also came at the end of this year with the loss of Meghan Gilholm as our student minister. Meghan arrived as a bright light who welcomed all to 'come as you are, come when you can' which allowed a number of new members and young families to feel comfortable in our midst. Hopefully we are able to carry that light as we continue to welcome one and all to this place where we meet as a 'faith family'. 

As we enter a new year, a new time for us all, I share this prayer:

Help Us Enter the New Year

God of all time, help us enter the New Year quietly, 
thoughtful of who we are to ourselves and to others,
mindful that our steps make an impact
and our words carry power.
May we walk gently.
May we speak only after we have listened well.
Creator of all life,
help us enter the New Year reverently,
aware that you have endowed
every creature and plant, every person and habitat
with beauty and purpose.
May we regard the world with tenderness.
May we honour rather than destroy.
Lover of all souls,
help us enter the New Year joyfully,
willing to laugh and dance and dream,
remembering our many gifts with thanks
and looking forward to blessings yet to come.
May we welcome your lavish love.
In this new year, may the grace and peace of Christ bless us now and in the days ahead.

- Vinita Hampton Wright

And as a community rich in Scottish heritage, enjoy this a capella version of the traditional New Year's Eve song Auld Lang Syne with lyrics written by Robert Burns, as sung by the vocal group Home Free. Happy New Year everyone!