Looking back at 2013

           The Christmas wrapping paper's in the recycle bin, the eggnog carton is empty and there's only crumbs in the cookie tin. No more "Frosty the Snowman" on the radio, there's a gazillion diet articles being published and we're lining up at fireworks stands to ring in the new year.

            But before we light up the Roman candles, let's take a look back at some of the high, and low, points of 2013.

            We added two new words to the dictionary. The first was Obamacare. No matter if you feel like we've taken a step toward Mother Russia by making everybody sign up or we're finally taking care of those who need medical care but can't afford it, Obamacare is now officially part of America's lexicon.

            Unfortunately, we added a horrible word, "twerking," thanks to a how-low-can-she-go reinvented Miley Cyrus. I cringe thinking that the only way for a young woman to be taken seriously is to flaunt her practically naked body and stick her tongue out.

            But then I remember two young women the same age as the Cyrus train wreck -- Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teen who was shot by terrorists but continues to speak out for equality for women, and Elizabeth Smart who shows grace, class and courage by encouraging women to stay strong no matter what happens to them. Those two outshine celebrity blips like Cyrus every day of the year.

            Then there's the pair of Southern favorites who made the headlines. Butter's best friend Paula Deen was lambasted for her racial comments, and down-home ZZ-Top clone Phil Robertson was vilified for his comments about homosexuality. I wish we spent as much time talking about how to make sure no one goes to bed hungry as we did about these two.

            We spent a lot of time in front of our flat-screen TVs this year, thanks to popular series like "Breaking Bad," "Downton Abbey," "Game of Thrones" and "Mad Men." As a writer, it's refreshing to see people flock to the small screen because of excellent story lines.

            Americans continue to line up at movie theaters that boast bigger-than-life 3-D action while watching Hobbits battle beasts with names we can't pronounce.

            Millions plunked down their movie watcher cards to see Robert Downey Jr. beat up bad guys in 'Iron Man 3." Romantics flocked to see the "Twilight" movies but rock-'em, sock-'em movies beat out love -- $409 million for our favorite Marvel super hero versus $69 million for the star-crossed vampires.

            No matter how much we tried to escape reality, anguish washed over us in 2013. On Patriot's Day, two vile bombers killed innocent people who were watching the Boston Marathon, and, a year later, we still have no answers as to how someone could walk into a quiet elementary school and kill innocent children.

            We continue to hold our breath as North Korea rattles its atomic missiles, we keep a wary eye on the Middle East and fear the Chinese. But all is right in the SEC world because Nick Saban decided to stay at the University of Alabama and not come to Texas.

            A new leader for the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, reminded us that the best blueprint for life is to not judge others for who they are but to embrace all people, from gays to sinners to believers to non-believers.

            None of us know what 2014 will bring but if we follow the example of Pope Francis, Malala and Elizabeth, I think we'll start off on the right foot.

            Happy New Year!

This column was originally published in The Fort Bend Herald.