Jan. 1 prods us to ponder changes for ourselves, those dearest to us

Lifestyle story for The Commercial Appeal

January 1, 2009

Almost 427 years ago, Pope Gregory XIII set Jan. 1 as the beginning of our 365-day year when he signed off on the papal bull that gave us the Gregorian calendar.

The first of January can be a fresh start, a grownup do-over. It can be the clean slate on which resolutions are written, the clean plate off which black-eyed peas are eaten.

Father Tom Condon, pastor at St. Peter’s Catholic Church Downtown, says, “The holidays are times of heightened awareness of blessings or things we might need to change.” Many people see a change in themselves as individuals as the first step in making the world better, Condon says … (read more)