Poem for a New Year

New Year's Rockin' Eve premiered in December 1973,
40 years ago, but Dick Clark wasn't the host until the second year. 
Though he reported live from Times Square in 1972,
he wouldn't become host of the show until December 1974.

1974 would be the year my father married my mother, making it one of the biggest years of his life.  It was also, then, the year I was conceived, probably on their honeymoon to San Francisco, based on the dates (go figure!).  But before 1974 arrived, 1973 was coming to a close.  That makes this poem 40 years old now, folks!  Exactly 40! 

So put yourself in the brain of Dick Brennan circa late December 1973, so much going on his life, widowed and about to re-marry, to start life all over again at 47.  But none of this was his job to write about.  His "job", instead, was to write a short poem for The Commuters Club for New Year's Day 1974.  The poem is 40 years old, but the sentiments may sound familiar...

New Year’s 1974

After all the feasting, we’re feeling weary.
The weather tends to be cold and dreary.
The news is awful – high prices – low fuel –
How can we keep warm when we can’t keep cool.
In the midst of this talk of our pollution,
It’s hard to decide a New Year Resolution.
But facts are facts – we must do our best.
As citizens we’re now being put to the test.
Let’s show the world we have the will
To prove that we have the best country still.
May the blessings of God down on you pour
In Nineteen Hundred and Seventy-Four.

Forty years later, so much still resonates!  And beyond the bulk of the poem, the closing wish is no less sincerely felt than it is today.  God bless you and yours in this new year ahead!  May 2014 be filled with an abundance of love, joy, and peace!

-Sean