The Cooking Diva Blog: Original Tropical Creations by Chef Melissa De Leon

New Year's New Hopes, an Invitation, and a Poem...

Holidays come high to many, but specially to mothers; and there is confusion which contrasts strongly with the quiet hours of New Year's day. If any thought entered the mother´s mind, it is only a query, "Is there any soul so pious as to keep its serenity always?". When I saw her today I noticed again the new light in my mother´s eyes. "I am so glad to see you," she said. "It is nice to go away sometimes, specially if one may go to heaven; but it is so perplexing here that sometimes I almost forget my name; yet on the whole, I like it even better than heaven, for here I can do something for the family and my dear friends."

I wish you the best for this new year. If there is something I would like you to do is, to recover the freedom and joy that are our birthright, and restore the spirit of playfulness that is vital to loving relationships.

Now, here it is. I have found this precious poem that brings a meaningful, uplifting message for the new year. Hope you like it.

A Welcome (by Kate Matson Post, 1904)

We bid you welcome, you happy New Year.
Just hear how the bells are ringing!
What glad surprises, what joy, what mirth,
May your bright, changeful months not be bringing!

Yes, we know they may bring sorrow and pain;
But why should we look for sadness?
Men delve in mines for treasures, not stones.
Why not peer in the future for gladness?

For whatever we look for, that we find,
In full or scantier measure.
Let us pass the stones of discordance by;
For we´re sure to find kindness, life´s treasure.

Now the reminder: Tomorrow January 2nd is the deadline to submit your entry for our first event of the year "New Year's Dinner Recipe & Photo Swap". To read the details of this fun event please visit the following links: In English / En Español / En français / In italiano

We are inviting all bloggers, and even our readers without a blog to take part in this delicious event. The theme is "New Year´s Dinner Recipe & Photo Swap", and your entry, recipe and /or photos should be posted by Monday January 2nd, 2006.

by Chef Melissa - CookingDiva · January 01, 2006 · 11:48 AM
Permalink · Comments (13) · TrackBack (0) · Categories: Food & Drink · Food Blog Events · General · MeMe

a beautiful message full of hope....thank you
Health and much laughter for the new year.
Luís and I were looking at the pictures of your dogs and so loved them! Laughed so much at Silky Lu...
We have three dogs too.
bjs
PS. Heard there was a quake there..hope all is ok
**

Comment by: mary • Jan 1, 2006 4:05:46 PM

Ok, I totally had some great pictures to send for the New Year's dinner photo swap-but then my digital camera got stolen! I'm checking to get some off of one of my friends-I'll keep you posted! Happy New Year!

Comment by: Chairborne Stranger • Jan 1, 2006 4:57:55 PM

Mary: Thank you for your visit, and Happy New Year to you too!
Yes, Silky-Lu is a very funny dog, she is so beautiful and expressive. The little one is a drama king :)
Last friday we had the earthquake,...the buildings were moving from one side to the other, things were falling to the ground, and people were really nervous. No major damage has been reported. Thanks for asking! :)

Chairborne Stranger: What a thing to happen, wow...I hope you find your camera. It would be great if your friends can share theirs. Please, please...keep me posted. Hugs, and Happy New Year!

Comment by: melissa_cookingdiva • Jan 1, 2006 6:15:55 PM

Thanks for the poem.

Ummm... Where are the photos of your dogs? I'd like to see them, too.

Last but not least, I'm glad you're fine after the earthquake.

Besos,
Paz

Comment by: Paz • Jan 1, 2006 10:33:04 PM

Thank you Paz! And thank you again for posting your entry for the New Year's swap!
Oh, you can find my doggies here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cookingdiva/sets/871383/

Hugs,
Melissa

Comment by: melissa_cookingdiva • Jan 1, 2006 11:08:39 PM

I am glad you are not affected by the quake.Thanks so much for sharing this lovely poem.
Wishing you and your family a wonderful and safe 2006 and may it bring you more lovely recipes, friends, laughter, and so much more.

Comment by: sailu • Jan 2, 2006 2:44:13 AM

Thought I would drop in and wish you a Happy New Year. By the way that is a good looking Weimaraner!

Comment by: Don Ray • Jan 2, 2006 9:06:39 AM

Glad to hear your okay Melissa. We get earthquakes in California of course, so I know they can be a bit un-nerving!
I'm going to try to get my photo in today. I'll have to recreate a dinner plate to take a picture of with leftovers since I was so excited about the pernil and arroz con guandules that I started eating and forgot to photograph it! Haha
You know, I was thinking yesterday about how food brings people together. Looking through the blog, I see there are so many people from so many different places visiting your site. The foods from each country may be similar or completely different, but it seems to be a language of its own that we all speak and understand. The different ingredients, textures and flavors are like different colored threads in a fabric that weave into one big tapestry called the human race. It's really cool!
Feliz año neuvo!

Comment by: Yovanna • Jan 2, 2006 1:10:12 PM

SAILU: Thank you for posting your entry for the event! Feliz Año Nuevo for you and your loved ones too! Hugs :)

DON RAY: Happy new year to you my dear friend! Hope you had a great new years eve dinner :) Oh, my dog..., she is a princess and I love her, BUT she is very jaleous of anything or anyone that comes close to me. Sometimes is funny to se her going thru that.

YOVANNA: I can only imagine your pernil was delicious. It would be great if you could recreate the plate and send me the photo, your info and any message you would like me to post as your entry. Happy New Year :)

Comment by: melissa_cookingdiva • Jan 2, 2006 1:48:57 PM

Feliz año nuevo, querida Melissa!

Comment by: Elvira • Jan 2, 2006 5:21:01 PM

hi melissa, what a beautiful post...happy new year to you!

Comment by: J • Jan 2, 2006 9:08:10 PM

Quedo muy bonito el evento, Felicidades!

Comment by: Elena Hernandez • Jan 3, 2006 8:56:09 PM

Beautiful! I wish you a most wonderfully Happy New Year :)

(And now that I found YOUR blog I am going to be visiting you daily as well!)
*hugs*
Kelly

Comment by: Kelly • Jan 5, 2006 11:37:25 PM