The corner where my tree once stood appears empty in comparison. Though I have arranged some plants in the space, and one is about to bloom it still appears, well, dull. After all the gifts have been opened and the last bits of glitter vacuumed up, the place needs a little something.

Wouldn’t it be nice if Thanksgiving could be celebrated earlier or later? It seems as if October, November and December are a blur of fun and excitement with harvest décor giving way to the sparkle of Christmas. Then there is January with resolutions of what we plan to do better than the year before. I usually make the same resolutions as most of us do to exercise and eat healthier, but this year I’ve added reading the Bible in chronological order.

I have to confess that I can get bogged down in some of the begat passages and want to move on to more interesting reading so I chose a program on the Bible App to help me stay on track. I’m doing the Bible Recap with Tara-Leigh Cobble and have found the reminders on my phone helpful too.

One of the listeners on K-Love radio called in with a good idea for next year. She said that they take stock of their holiday when they put the decorations away. They write how they are feeling about the way they celebrated, how much money they spent and how they could make it more Christ centered the next year. Then they place this paper in the box with their Christmas decór to help them stay balanced when next December rolls around.

It is easy to get caught up in all the hype and eat too much or drink too much. Thankfully, I hardly drink at all, but the eating got a little out of control this year! I won’t lie and say it wasn’t fun, though, but next year I will try to do a little better in this department. I know every day is a new day, but I really like to be intentional about every new trip around the sun. I believe that it helps me to take stock and try to make adjustments.

With so many things vying for all of our time this helps me to go back to the basics. Years ago I wrote a column for The Daily News called Faith and Family. I met so many lovely people who were working to keep their lives in order with the help of our heavenly Father. They motivated and encouraged me to strive for a life that pleases God.

Talk is cheap, I know, but there is a verse in the Bible that speaks about having a vision. It says that people perish without vision, and I think taking stock is part of having a vision for our lives. So I’ll make those resolutions again and pray that 2025 is a productive and safe year for us all.