It has become a tradition at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve to hear the song, “Auld Lang Syne,” although many of us don’t quite understand what it means.

The title translates to “times gone by.” The song asks if it’s right that old times be forgotten, and at the same time reminds us to remember old friends from the past and not let them be forgotten.

In one of my favorite movies, When Harry Met Sally, Billy Crystal’s character Harry asks, “What does this song mean? My whole life, I don’t know what this song means. I mean, ‘Should old acquaintance be forgot?’ Does that mean that we should forget old acquaintances? Or does it mean that if we happened to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot them?” “Well, maybe it just means that we should remember that we forgot them or something,” Sally reasons. “Anyway, it’s about old friends.”

“Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should old acquaintance be forgot, and auld lang syne.”

I recently had the opportunity for a week to visit old friends, and I can say that I will never forget this trip…or them. There are some people in your life that no matter how much time goes by, the love, caring and connection will always be there. While these friendships have had to adjust to new circumstances, I know that they will weather any storm and remain standing through the test of time.

Time. With the New Year upon us, it’s natural to reflect over the last 12 months. We think about what has happened, what hasn’t happened, what we wish had happened and what we wish hadn’t happened. We may wonder why things happened the way they did, and in time we may or may not figure out the answers. For many of us, this past year has presented a time for many things:

Time to say goodbye

Time to move on

Time for celebration

Time for sadness

Time for joy

Time for sickness

Time for health

Time for love

Time for faith

Time to feel grateful

Timing is everything

This month of December, the last month of the year, is symbolically the precipice of new beginnings. However, new beginnings often bring endings. For me, I am seeing a lot of endings. Some are necessary in order to move on, some are simply a matter of timing that require moving on. I remind myself that when endings are either by choice or are not within our control, we need to trust that what will be… will be best. This is not easy to do, but I strongly  believe that it is true.

Thank you to all who have danced with me to the soundtrack of my life.  When the music was tough to hear, we learned and we grew. When the music stopped, there was a definite silence, but it provided appreciation for what we had.

As my soundtrack continues with the playlist for 2014 yet to be decided, I am determined to keep dancing! I wish for everyone a delicious soundtrack for this coming year. Remember that even when there are sour notes, they help us to truly see and appreciate the harmony in our lives. When the timing is right, and all the notes fall into place, dance, dance, dance!