I Saw the Moon

The first day of the new year fell to night. It was one like any other. Errands, chores, and daily tasks. The only difference was the change in weight. A new year. It could bring change for the better or change for the worse. It could bring dreams come true or end with the same sour disappointment.

I looked at the new year with hesitance on its first day. As much as I want to hope, be bold, and expect good things to come, the overshadow of doubt hangs as heavy as the falling night. These were thoughts I reflected as I drove home through a busy city. Bright lights of the highway, dealerships, and other businesses hid the stars that shined overhead. The radio was playing encouraging songs, but my heart was guarded. Why should I shift to be hopeful, bold, and bright when long shadows have haunted me for over a month? What’s the justification of a sudden turn around? The choice to be hopeful? What if this new year has nothing to offer?

I don’t know why I looked. I wasn’t changing lanes. I wasn’t anywhere near by exit, but I turned my head to the horizon on the right. Blocky shapes of businesses and tall streetlights blotted out anything that resembled nature. Yet, in that single moment I looked, framed perfectly by a city skyline was an orange sliver hanging in the sky. So low on the horizon and so dim in color, it should’ve gone unnoticed. Such a thin smile in the night overshadowed by darkness.

It was the moon. A waxing crescent. The first phase right after a new moon.

That single look took my breath away. How fitting, I realized, to see a dim, waxing crescent moon the first night of the new year. It’s light is small, now. Overshadowed by the Earth, It’s barely visible in the lights of the city. Yet, darkness doesn’t consume all of it. The next night, its light will be a little bigger. It’ll continue to grow until it’s a full moon, then all would be able to see it.

I believe that’s what I needed to see that night. No matter how you may view the new year, your light may be small now, but that doesn’t mean it can’t grow. You may be overburdened by doubt and anxiety, but nurture your light and the darkness will not be able to extinguish it.

So, for 2025, I want to be like the waxing moon and grow in Light and grow in hope.