Calendar dates are just arbitrary numbers. As Carolyn Arends sings, “every day is New Year’s Day.” But we don’t always approach things that way.

2024 is a clean slate. How will you spend the year?

I saw the new year in the way I have for more than 30 years now. My wife and I gathered for three days with a group if good friends at a retreat center. We have missed one of two years in the past three decades, but even when we lived in Germany we were able to join virtually.

Each year it is the same thing. Good food, good conversation and prayer. Lots of prayer. We need it.

We pray for each other, our families and the world around us. We celebrate milestones and mourn the losses. There is lots of opportunity for conversation. And time for solitude as well for those of us introverts.

It’s a time of reflection on the year that just passed, and anticipation for what lies ahead. All set in a framework of faith and the acceptance that comes with long friendship. We don’t always agree on how to deal with the world’s problems, but we do agree we need to listen to what is being said.

I think one of the key things that makes these relationships work is time. Conversations aren’t rushed. There is no deadline. And having known each other so long there is often no need for backstory. We know the history.

I’m a naturally early riser, so I miss the conversations that take place late at night. I just can’t stay up for them. Mind you, as we age I’m not the only one with that problem.

But invariably someone besides me will also be up in the early morning hours and conversation will break out once more.

It is a community that comes together only a couple of times annually, but frequency isn’t needed for it to be strong. The relationships are deep.

Between us we have five children. As I was writing this I realized that they are now older than we were when we started this tradition. I hope they too are able to form bonds as deep.

That is my wish for you too as this new year begins. May you nurture deep and lasting friendships with people who will walk with you on your journey, friendships that will sustain you through the ups and downs of the year.

And on the last day of the year, as you reflect on 2024, may you realize that you are closer to God than you are today.