Precious Lord, take my hand
Lead me on, let me stand
I’m tired, I’m weak, I’m worn
Through the storm, through the night
Lead me on to the light
Take my hand, Precious Lord
Lead me home.

Thomas A. Dorsey, “Father of Gospel Music,” 1932

OMG, what a year it’s been! How wiped out are you? How tired, weak and worn? But here’s the good news: You Made It.

I’ve Been Struggling
to find a way to wrap this up. To find and articulate meaning to the inchoate disasters, deaths, divisions, injustices and general mean-spiritedness of 2021. And I can’t.

But Google Can
Distilling multiple billions of searches down to two minutes, Google gives us a powerful glimpse into our world and sums up this year’s theme as searching for healing.

Isn’t It Amazing?
In spite of everything, we persevere. We find goodness. We find joy. We find connection. The human spirit rises and rises again to the challenge.

Mazel Tov
In the Jewish tradition, “Mazel Tov” means congratulations. Actually, these two words mean “Much” “Goodness”. So it’s not just congratulations on what you’ve done, but wishing you much good into the future. I like that spirit of optimism.

In My 20’s
I bought Aretha Franklin’s Amazing Grace, her biggest-selling album and the top-grossing gospel record of all time. Yup, a double album set of long-playing, 331/3  vinyl records.

All Aretha’s songs are great. But she belts out “Precious Lord” with unassailable conviction. I’ve got a Spotify list of 100 different artists doing their own heartfelt renditions of this song playing right now! Talk about healing.

“We’re All Just Walking Each Other Home.”
The Eastern spiritual teacher Ram Dass used this phrase to remind us that we do not go through life alone. I’ve always loved the image. It’s simple, loving and kind. It’s also powerful.

May you be at home, wherever that feels right for you. May you enjoy the love and hugs of those you choose to love and hug. May you use your voice to lift your words, songs, chants, shouts and blessings into the world. May this Holiday Season bring healing to yourself and others.

We Made It
I guess it takes a video from Google, a Jewish phrase, a Christian gospel song and a yoga Guru’s observation to sum up 2021.

I hope you have a well-deserved break. Take a breather and rest up. The world will be waiting for us soon enough.

From my home to yours…
From my heart to yours…
May you be well. Happy Holidays.

Be the happy recipient of more great tips and techniques, along with intelligent musings on the state of communications, by signing up for Diane Ripstein’s regular NewsNotes right here.