When is kissing out of fashion?

When the gorse is out of blossom!

But then the gorse blooms 12 months of the year here in Ireland, as I was reminded as I drove country roads on New Years Eve. We Irish seem to have become very kissy people in recent years - which I think is lovely - so this made the perfect justification for kissing all the ladies at the New Years party in the Club later on! It was a very civilised affair, bring-a-bottle and a dish to share, plenty of chat with old friends and new, and great jollity. 2008 is off to a good start.

A cousin sent me with his New Year wishes this BLUEBEAUTY link with amazing photos of our planet Earth from space. If you have Powerpoint, click on the link, open it and click on the screen to see the slideshow. If you don't, you could try this link, but the Powerpoint version is better. As a Buddhist, he says it has a spiritual message: we are but an infinite speck on an infinite speck, so nothing should be taken too seriously! As a Christian, I agree that it has a spiritual message, but a rather different one I think. I see in this delicate jewel the traces of a loving Father-like God, through whose creative power we humankind have evolved. He has endowed us with this bountiful planet to meet all our needs. He has made us in his image to be souls: moral beings knowing right from wrong; with cleverness to understand creation; and with free will to use it for good or evil. We must take it all very seriously I believe. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't enjoy a good party, as they did at the wedding in Cana of Galilee! As in so much else, Jesus shows us the way, and the Spirit sustains us!