Looking ahead from the mist

The night was dark.  Street lights lit the street, but could not be seen easily since the fog hid all but the bright orb around the light.  A light mist lived in the fog, so the next morning's early drivers would have to scrape a light layer of ice from their windshields.  The wind would make the chill in the air 10 degrees lower if anyone were to get out in it.

All the people in the house were sleeping already, resting in order to be ready for the next day's activities that would start in the pre-dawn hours.  So, the night hours yielded a lot of time for the one person who remained awake to review the year's twisting path. In many ways, the path had led by "still waters."  Yet, it had had moments of unpleasantness, and one moment that meandered across the edge of "the valley of the shadow of death."

In two days the year would end.  So, in the late hours of this night, the lone wakeful person tried hard to see where the trail would lead him over the next 365 days.  Of course, there was no way to tell.  But, his greatest hope in life he would keep as his priority.  He wondered where the peaks and valleys would occur, knowing that he would see both.  And, short of death, he knew that next year at this same time, he would have a chance to review the year again.  And, maybe, just maybe, the fog would not be hiding the street lights, the wind wouldn't further chill the freezing air, and mist would give way to dry ground.  It would certainly be a welcome change.