I just found out that my Civil War Reenacting Novel Unconditional Surrender will be released on New Year’s Eve. WOW! That is so exciting. It made me think of the best New Year’s Eve I ever had. Of course, there were many filled with family and friends, but I supposed the best ever was the end of 2005. Hurricane Katrina had devastated the Gulf Coast, especially Mississippi and New Orleans, both places I called home. Although the emotional impact and even the watermarks of flood and waves would remain, 2006 signaled a ray of hope. People were coming back. Homes were being renovated or rebuilt. Mississippi and New Orleans would rise like a phoenix from the death, destruction and hopelessness.
To ring in a New Year away from the heartache, a good friend Ruth and I traveled to New York City. The fog was so thick we couldn’t see the fireworks from high atop Rockefeller Plaza in the Rainbow room, but our spirits soared. The Drifters sang “Up On the Roof” and we laughed until we cried: The Drifters? The Rainbow Room? Up On The Roof? It was like the whole night had been planned for us. It was so ironic. And once the other guests discovered we survived Katrina, the love we received was almost tangible. Yes, this girl from Mississippi does wear shoes (and I have all my life), but the cab driver thought I bought them at the New York airport. What a wonderful time we had in the City That Never Sleeps, for that night we sang, danced, laughed, watched the sun rise, and kissed 2005 goodbye. And we knew we were like that phoenix.
So what was your favorite New Year’s Eve? Write me and I will post the unique and heartfelt one.