“The top stories of the year.”

That phrase alone is one that often sparks fear in the hearts of a newspaper — or other news organization — this time of the year.

It is something many do and something all fret. And the main reason for that fear, is the fear of leaving something out.

Thursday, The Post will unveil the top 10 stories of the year and in doing so will do its best to encapsulate 365 days of news, events, stories and photos into just one report. Again, the fear is real, or as the kids these days say, complete with a hashtag, the struggle is real.

If you look back at a year’s worth of newspapers, trying to reduce what amounts to nearly 2,000 stories to just the top 10, the task would seem far too big, too impossible to complete.

But, this year, just like every year, there have been those stories that have stood out; those stories that have been burned into our memory for both the best of reasons and the worst of reasons.

As we have looked back, there are items that will very likely not be among the top stories of the year. There was the arrest made in connection to a psychedelic mushroom farm operation here in Warren County.

Although it might not be among the top stories of the year, it at least taught our newsroom how to write the word “psychedelic.”

There was the accident along Interstate 20 where a truck carrying produce caught fire. Thankfully the driver and passenger were uninjured, thanks to the quick reaction by a sheriff’s deputy who saw fire coming from the truck.

But what that story stand out was the photos of the burning heads of lettuce falling from the truck; an image amazingly captured by our former photographer Justin Sellers.

Not among the top stories of the year, primarily because a decision on this topic seems as far away today as it did at the beginning of the year, is the idea of a new sports complex for Vicksburg.

Early in the year, we thought we were so close to a decision, a plan that might have included a special referendum in January.

It’s our hope a final decision and plan can be included in the top 10 stories of 2016.

There were stories in 2015 that broke our heart and thrilled our souls.

There were stories in 2015 that were small in stature and length, but huge in impact.

And, there were stories in 2015 that we will never forget for all the wrong and right reasons.

There were nearly 2,000 stories in 2015 and yet there were many that were never told. Let’s hope 2016 is one that has even more stories to tell and is as equally difficult to recap in a single list.

Happy New Year!

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Tim Reeves is publisher at The Vicksburg Post. Contact him by emailing tim.reeves@vicksburgpost.com.