For the past several years I’ve found myself spending time with a group of friends on New Year’s Eve.  We’ve played games, consumed the requisite snacks, and watched the ball drop at Times Square.  This year things didn’t pan out as usual, and I found myself at Lighthouse Mission, our local homeless shelter, serving ice cream to the residents.  It’s a monthly Crash we do, hosting an ice cream social for the residents, and our last Wednesday of the month fell on December 31st.  This New Year’s Eve, the atmosphere was festive, everyone was in a good mood, and it was an unexpected blessing to visit with the men and women (and ooh and ahh over the brand new baby).  One of the residents offered a blessing over the ice cream and prayed for us, too.  It was more than I expected to encounter that evening, and it was a perfect way to wind down 2008.