It’s January in the northern hemisphere. Here in Ohio, this time of year often brings grey and cold. A great season to bundle up and wander the sleeping forest. Or to snuggle at home with a cup of tea. Pretty pictures perhaps but what piece of the puzzle might be missing? While we slowly navigate this quiet season, our thoughts and dreams don’t have to sleep.
To me, this is a contemplative season, time to ponder. You might think… “i think too much. I just want to rest.” Great, then that’s what you do. We’re all different. I just want stay get in the habit to checking in on what I do need. Sometimes… often I see people settle into a routine that is comfortable and call it life. But as life goes on, you grow and change. The needs of body, mind and spirit evolve. So this time of year for me is good to review. How am I doing? Am I happy? What nagging habits are holding me back and how can I change them?
I also think about doors… doors that might open for you as you go down the road of life. I view “doors” as opportunities that pop up that somehow resonate with me. They could be a chance for a new job, a new service project, some new training, a fresh desire to pursue some passion we’ve never made time for. I love these doors that pop up for me. When a new door, a new opportunity shows up, it doesn’t mean I dump my all that I’ve built and dash of to some new life. I like to think that I stick my head thru those open doors and look around. Doors often bring us opportunities to grow but we get so wrapped in what we’ve always done… we don’t even peek. Friends tell me, “Oh, I couldn’t do that” but don’t even pause in to consider what ideas a new door might offer them.
We build our habits, our neural pathways, deeply. But there’s always room for change. I don’t know anyone who is 100% perfectly happy and healthy in their work and life. Yet we’ve been trained to fear change. Don’t believe it. Change is learning. Change is growing. Many of us are living the life we chose in our early 20’s, or we’re living the life our parents showed us was “best.” We carry descriptions of ourselves, our strengths and weaknesses that we formed in middle school. I don’t want to live the life that a 12 year old chose just to survive adolescent peer pressure.
Dear friends, life is short. You came here with a purpose, with passions. Don’t let go of them just because you’ve built a nest that is comfortable and you’re afraid to rock your own boat a bit. So consider making a fresh cup of tea, sitting down with a journal and consider what is great and what could change in your life. Then learn new ways you might make change happen. Or visualize some door opening that will bring you fresh insight, new wisdom and power to be open to what’s new in our world.
Breathe deep and take time to evaluate where you are and visualize what you dream of.
Have fun!
Sending light and love to us all.
❤️
Would you like a bit more inspiration to make some needed changes? Recents reads for me include:
- “The Power of Writing it Down” by Allison Fallon
- “Atomic habits- Tiny changes, remarkable results” by James Clear
- “A Culture of happiness” by Tho Ha Vinh
- “Belong- Find Your People, Create Community, and Live a More Connected Life” by Radha Agrawal
- “The Mountain Is You- Transforming Self-sabotage Into Self-mastery” by Brianna Wiest
All available thru my local library.