Endings and beginnings
I’m not a fan of New Year’s Resolutions. I don’t get the randomness of the date. Somehow when you wake up on January 1st, it’s supposed to be the right time to resolve to change your life! Also, I don’t like the way that whatever resolution we opt for can become a stick to beat ourselves with as the year progresses and we notice it’s not that important any more. So many gym memberships begun in January end in February or March!
However, I do like the idea of our lives changing and evolving with the seasons. As the days grow shorter and darkness seems to envelop the world, it seems very natural to retreat, rest and recuperate, just like animals going into hibernation. The Christmas holiday is a great time to do this, hopefully with a bit of extra food and drink for nourishment and time with friends and family for companionship thrown in for good measure. The fires traditionally lit around the winter solstice bring light into the darkness and Christmas lights bring warmth and cosiness to a home. The intensive work that led up towards the holiday period takes its toll on us, and this period of rest helps us to re-connect with our bodies. Listening to what our bodies are saying is crucial and we need to keep resting until we are truly ready to get going again.
‘Wintering brings about some of the most profound and insightful moments of our human experience, and wisdom resides in those who have wintered.’ Katherine May
As the days begin to lengthen, it feels good to emerge from the period of rest. We are more refreshed and hopeful and ready to begin a new season in our lives. It makes sense to me that as we emerge, we re-evaluate how our lives are going. If we know our core values, we can think about how well our lives are aligned with them. If we are unsure of what they are, we can spend some time thinking about that. After re-evaluating, we might find that we need to re-orientate our lives in order to give ourselves a feeling of greater meaning and purpose. We can notice the ways in which we have gone a bit astray and maybe even betrayed ourselves a little. We might decide to make lifestyle, relationship or job changes among other things. If these changes originate from our own core values, they will be so much more meaningful than a resolution that we might have felt pushed into making.
In this way, I prefer to frame resolutions as re-evaluations and re-orientations of our lives. As our bodies let us know we are refreshed and ready, the time becomes right for considering changes. As the world starts to become lighter, it gives us a natural opportunity to find new beginnings, which take us in the direction of our values and our dreams.
If you’d like to work on what your core values are, there’s a little video here that might help.
If you’d like some help as you re-evaluate your life and re-orientate yourself, then coaching could really help. Click here to book a complimentary, no obligation consultation chat to discuss what coaching could do for you.
