Alva Review-Courier -

A new year always makes me wax philosophical.

I know it's just a flip of the calendar page, but I can't help but feel the weight of the symbolism.

A new year is a time for new beginnings and fresh starts. It's a time to try things differently than how we've done them in the past. It's exciting, and each new year I find myself resolving to make this one better than the past one.

This is a great time to pause and evaluate the past year, both the joy and the pain. It gives me a marker for setting aside the old – even the great things that have happened – in order to make room for the new.

When it comes to painful occurrences, that might take some extra work. But I've learned to even be grateful for negative experiences in my life. I file them as educational. They helped me grow and learn, and for that I can be thankful. If I've caused the pain, I do everything in my power to make amends before that calendar page flips. I vow to learn from my mistakes and not make them again. If the hurt was inflicted by another, I forgive and release the one who caused it. That way I can enter the new year without regret and with an excitement for what's in store.

Of course, I know I will make mistakes in the new year too. I'm human after all. But I also know there could be a lot of joy ahead for me, and I embrace this possibility.

Each new day is a gift we're blessed to have, an opportunity for fresh mercy. I hope each of you in House District 58 will pause for a moment at the turning of this year and set aside the past and welcome the new.

Happy New Year!

As always, if I can help in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me. You may reach me by email at [email protected], or phone me at 405-557-7339. God Bless you and the State of Oklahoma.