Theodore Tilton (1835-1907) was the editor of The Independent, a New York  weekly newspaper run by the Congregationalists. Tilton was also a poet who  wrote the ‘King’s Ring.’ This poem tells the story of a Persian king who engraved  the maxim on his signet ring, ‘Even this shall pass away.’

The king was very  wealthy, and while he received more wealth, he would ask himself, “What is  wealth?” Then he would answer his question by saying, “Even this shall pass away.” The king had many friends, and they would always make him  happy. But he cried, “O loving friends of mine… Even this shall pass away.”  The lady he crowned as his queen was the fairest of all, but he knew “mortal flesh should come to clay, even this shall pass away.” 

One day the king was wounded in the war, and he said, “Pain is hard to bear, but  with patience day by day, even this shall pass away.” Later, when they put up  his statue in the public square to honor him, he asked himself, “What is fame?  Fame is but a slow decay; even this shall pass away.” We have heard that ‘time  and tide wait for none.’ But as the Persian king realized, not only time and tide, but nothing in this life waits for us. Everything will pass away. We must remember  this truth, especially when we are saying goodbye to another year in our life and entering a new one. 

Yes, our wealth, beauty, joys, and sorrows will pass away. Our lives will pass away.  However, our acts of kindness and love will remain in the hearts of  everyone we come across. Moreover, our faith assures us that our souls will live  forever with God after we pass away from this world, provided we love him and obey his will always in our life here on earth. 

Hence, as we begin the New Year, the focus of our life should be primarily on  things that will help us to be with God forever in peace and joy. I wish and pray  that your New Year may be filled with love and acts of kindness that will last not  only for the New Year but also forever.