I wish you cause for great laughter. Genuine connection. Deep conversations. Authenticity in all your encounters.

I wish you joy – pure, unadulterated. And peace – quiet within and calm without. May you chance upon fleeting moments of excruciating beauty. Sunsets upon sunsets. Cool breezes on the warmest days, sunshine on the coldest. Ice cream in wintertime, cool cucumbers on your eyelids, the scent of verdant grass, and yes – of course – that of mud after the first rain, and every rain.

May you have many second chances to set things right. May you forgive and be forgiven. And may your memory be long for love and short for unkindnesses.

I wish you stainless white shirts, jeans that feel they were made for your skin, and comfortable bras. May you have long drives with the perfect playlist, and experience again and again, how that one song makes your tummy flip. I wish an abundance of everything that tastes fantastic inside your mouth and in your brain.

I wish you embraces where you don’t feel like letting go – and are not let go of first. Hands that hold yours. And intimacy that offers you abandon and safety both. May the earth be cool under your feet. May the ocean kiss your toes. May the trees hug your back. And may you wake to silence broken by birdsong.

This is the year of the Tiger – I wish you courage, strength of mind, patience, and a way to stay your hand – and tongue. I wish you power over your own self. May you stay humble under the eyes of God. Above all, may you find and know your truth, and may it set you free.