And so we come,
To say farewell,
To 2023.
Through twists and turns,
And ups and downs,
An adventure we did see.

When the year began,
Home was still,
By sea in Bognor Regis.
Sea winds gusting,
Sea gulls squawking,
And lots that now we miss.

The months preparing,
To say goodbye
Were hard to say the least.
Letting go of what’s known,
And beginning the new,
Can be a scary beast.

Amidst it all,
Life threw some punches,
With Lydia unexpectedly under the knife.
One appendix less,
And now she’s better,
And back to being full of life.

Louise kept on crafting,
Wool, fabric and stiches
Stashed in every available corner.
Rebekah keeps writing,
And singing and dancing,
And Dan, well he just got a bit bolder.

The country saw a coronation,
And more u-turns than we want to remember,
Though at least Rwanda is paused for the mo,
And yet again
we didn’t win Eurovision,
But at least it Sam gave a good show.

And so we said
our fond goodbyes,
To work, to school, to friends.
Our lives packed up,
Into boxes on vans,
Our time in Bognor now ends.

And then we landed
In a new place,
Leatherhead was to become home.
It took some time,
But it’s become exciting
to have new spaces to roam.

We’ve felt loved, accepted,
And touched by the welcome
We’ve received from new neighbours and friends.
It’s made it much easier,
To let go of what was,
Though we still miss the people we’ve left.

So thanks to all those
Who’ve been part of our year,
Whether you’re near or far.
In the year that’s to come,
We pray you will know,
just how loved and appreciated you are.