To the Amateur Philosopher

You, with your third glass of wine and sudden insights into the human condition —

history may not remember your theories, but the table will remember your timing.

To Memory —
Our Most Unreliable Guest

You never remember quite what happened, but you recall how it felt.

Here’s to nostalgia: the art of tasteful exaggeration.

Edit the night well… wait, what was
I saying?

I’ll drink to those who do,

I’ll drink to those who don’t,

but never the ones who say they will and later decide they won’t.

But the ones I’ll toast from the break of day to the wee hours of the night, are the ones who say,

“I never have, but just for you
I might.

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.

To the Hosts!

To the ones who clean before and after,

who light the candles and dim their own worries,

who pour from bottles and hearts in equal measure.

You make us believe that joy can be scheduled — which is why we always RSVP “Yes!”

To Our Better Angels — and Worse Decisions

May our moral compasses point true north,

but only after one more round.

Here’s to integrity with a splash of irresponsibility —

it keeps the stories interesting.

To the Ones Who Don’t Post About It

To those who dance without documenting,

who live a good night instead of proving one.

Your joy is unfiltered,

and that’s worth raising a glass to …

and filming it in portrait mode.

Here’s to the Ones Who Stay Late…

To those still talking when the music’s gone quiet,

still laughing under half-empty glasses,

still unwilling to let the night end — because the best part of a party is in the lingering.

Cheers to Good Trouble

Here’s to the plans that weren’t,

the curfews broken,

the laughter that echoed down hallways we shouldn’t have walked.

May we always find a reason to push boundaries and enjoy the icing on the cake we just poked.