A new year is a time to start afresh by reflecting on the past while planning how to build on previous accomplishments to move forward in new ways.

So for us here at the Times, January brought a new commitment to build on our efforts to reach out to the community by engaging readers in new ways. Thanks to you, we already have developed a loyal following for reader-engagement initiatives such as Kindness in Real Life and Be An Angel, two ways to acknowledge good people in the community and look for help with projects and concerns.

And recently we started gaining even more reader engagement with our feature called Your Turn that invites people to write in about interesting experiences and insights.

But we’d love to do more, so we have recently thought of engaging readers with specific prompts related to the holidays. Here are a few possibilities that you could write us about:

Valentine’s Day: Send us your love story; how you met, how you fell in love and what provided the spark? Where are you at today?

April Fool’s Day: What was the best joke you ever played on someone? How did you make it work, and what gave you the idea?

Memorial Day: Write about a special memory you have of someone who served in the military. What does service to your country mean to you?

Fourth of July: What does freedom mean to you? What happens when two freedoms conflict? What do you take from the American Dream, and is it still alive? How do we get less partisan in our politics?

Labor Day: Tell us what work means to you, and how you developed a work ethic. Are we working too hard? How do you find a balance?

Halloween: What’s the spookiest thing that ever happened to you? What did you learn from the experience?

Thanksgiving: Talk about your family’s roots, and how this relates to your experience of Thanksgiving, including the traditions observed when relatives get together. How do you ensure that everyone gets along?

Winter holidays: Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa... what does it all mean, and what’s the best part about your holiday traditions? If you had to list the top five places to view holiday lights in your area, what would they be, and why?

Try to keep responses to under 300 words. And please, if you have other ideas or other topics you’d like to write about, feel free to send us a note.

Lee Howard is The Day’s community editor. He can be reached at l.howard@theday.com or by calling (860) 701-4356.