So how did it end? She found herself in the desert hanging by a length of sinew that had been driven under her breastbone and attached to the top of a 15 foot pole. Her chest pulled to the sun, her arms limp by her sides, her bare feet dangling-- twelve inches above the hot sand. The skin around her lips was cracked and split. Behind her closed lids her eyeballs melted into soft lumps.

Everything from the past--sorrows, worries, infractions and trespasses--was burned away by the blistering sun. Like an ancient form of chemotherapy, all negativity was blasted from her body and soul. She had been cleansed and readied for a new year.

When she awoke, everything was more magnificent and more splendid than she had remembered. Especially through the lens of her new camera that intimidated the hell out of her and took her six days to unpack for fear of handling it.

But then of course, for the more literally minded (such as T) who might see great beauty in concrete . . . there were walls of concrete to be enjoyed on this new year's day.

New beginnings for a new life that for so long appeared only in her dreams.

Happiest of New Years to All! May your sweetest imaginings take shape in reality and may it be better than you had even dreamed possible. Blessed be.

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