Christmas and New Year have always been great moments in our lives. The whole festive season brings joy and happiness in our hearts.  We are always looking forward to meeting and sharing our experiences. Our joyful moments are what we bring to 2024.

In today’s Gospel, we find Mary with Jesus, with us at the beginning of the New Year. In our own realities where we are in our lives. Mary treasured these things and pondered them in her heart. It’s about the best thing we can have, to prepare us for a New Year, it’s the wonderful thing we can have to show us how to live life positively as we move into the New Year ahead of us. We have a choice we can carry negative things in our hearts and allow those things to destroy our new year, or leave all the negative ideas and live happily in the new year. If we choose to carry positive things in our hearts, that determines how we relate to God, others, ourselves, and the situations around us. As Mary treasured these things and pondered them, she found God in all circumstances. That’s why at the wedding at Cana she told the people to do whatever Jesus would tell them, she did not complain she trusted in Jesus and knew that he would respond to their request.    

Later on looking at Mary as her life changes, at this point as she is a mother, it’s a life which could have become bitter and negative, because Joseph dies, Jesus leaves home, and eventually, he is crucified and dies. There are so many things in life that are before Mary that could have made her into a very different person. However, she pondered and treasured in her heart this child Jesus and she continued to carry him in her heart for the rest of her life. At the very end, she is a positive person full of love and life because she never pondered and carried within her heart anything negative and contrary to love.

As our new year begins, Mary shows us the way. We have a choice to make.

• What will we carry in our hearts into the New Year?
• What do we carry which will determine how we relate to others?
• What do we carry that will determine our choices?
• What do we carry that will determine the kind of person I am going to be in 2024?

Mary says to each one of us today. Treasure and ponder in your heart this child Jesus who has been born to us. If you treasure and carry this child, you will treasure and carry love, peace, joy, the people that you love, live with, work with, serve, positive memories and 2024 will be a wonderful year for all of us.

Let us join Mary to carry Jesus Christ in the year 2024.

Joan Isich