Yesterday, my friend and I were talking about the future. And about life. She paused, then said: “We come and go for no reason.” And I burst out laughing. Well that is one perspective. What a perfect antidote to worrying. Especially given these challenging times.

But maybe one’s times are always challenging. Centuries ago, Shakespeare gave voice to a similar thought in the words of Macbeth: “Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player / That struts and frets his hour upon the stage / And then is heard no more. It is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury / Signifying nothing.”

But to be here now — and to know one is here now — this is something incredible.

Today in this wintertime California desert I was struck by the beauty of snow capped mountains. I grabbed my iphone while stopped in traffic. I captured an image of the road before me.

Tonight, the day is over, and tomorrow a new year begins.

I think about what Gandalf said to Frodo: “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”