Annus Horribilis?

I'm an incorrigible optimist, but this year definitely has put me to the test. The past few months have been cruelly "morbid" to put it mildly. First my dad, then our neighbour, then a good friend's nephew, now my only paternal cousin, aged 55, who died from the same cause his father died of more than a decade ago, a sudden pulmonary embolism. This means that his mother, my father's elder sister lost her only brother and her only child within three months. Life moves on, of course and I always try to see the positive side in everything, but I definitely hope that all "protagonists" of my life will make it through Q4 and beyond. Is it too early to wish for a happy and healthy New Year? Well, since I already ordered my Christmas cards, I guess not.