Reflections & Intentions: Cultivating a Slow & Seasonal Year
This time of year I always turn a bit reflective. The dark languid days between holidays seem to finally offer a bit of well needed respite. During this little gap on the calendar, time seems to slow to a crawl and we finally have time - time to rest, time to play, time to breathe, and time to dream. I find this time of year perfect for reflecting on the year gone by and setting intentions before launching myself into a new year, and in this case, a new decade.
In my younger years, I used to come up with lofty resolutions at New Year’s that I thought would make my life better. Although, my efforts to achieve these (oftentimes unrealistic) goals would lose steam after a few short weeks because my resolutions were too rigid to embrace naturally occurring challenges or unpredictable life events. And somehow, January doesn’t quite feel like the greatest time to make changes in my life. I'd rather enjoy the winter season and take smaller, bite-size actions a bit later. As a result of shooting at the wrong targets at the wrong time, I'd always default back into old habits instead of experiencing lasting results.
To the American ear, that last bit about being slow to take action at the new year, rather than grabbing life the horns and making monumental changes, sounds lazy - but I beg to differ. Rather, I've just come to accept my seasonal needs, energy levels, and natural flow of inspiration. In recent years, I’ve stepped out of the rat-race and made an effort to become more present in my life. In doing so, I’ve discovered that my inspiration and bursts of energy don’t arrive until February or March. The dark and cold days of January still call me to rest quietly and meander slowly through the magic of Winter. My natural tendencies interestingly share similarities with nature’s changing seasons, and this is not something I’m inclined work against. I think that not being aware of my natural cycles and tendencies for so long was probably the at the root of my new year's resolution failures.
Last year, I conjured up a single theme for the year that reminded me time and time again to stay true to my vision of becoming the most illuminated version of myself in 2019. This was a gentler approach to manifesting my dreams, and allowed my evolution to be more open ended and forgiving of the ups and downs in life. My chosen word was presence and I feel that I was able to weave that thread throughout much of my work, relationships, and day-to-day living. Instead of just improving a very specific aspect of my life, I was able to enhance many aspects in varying ways.
This year, I've selected a theme once again. I’ve also aligned my natural cycles of energy and inspiration (that I spent last year observing) with seasonal objectives that will guide me on my way to my truest, most illuminated self in 2020. I feel this intuitive method allows space in my annual road-map for wonder, adaptations, and infinite possibilities of growth. Instead of measuring my success and happiness on a single scale predetermined by a very specific goal, it allows space to consider opportunities of growth that I may never have thought of for myself.
I start this process by reflecting on the year gone by and identifying patterns and synchronicities between my successes, challenges, and seasonal needs. Through non-judgmental observance, I discover what lessons life taught me, what hardships I faced, and what experiences acted as catalysts to my personal evolution. Then I identify what is holding me back, what I no longer want to carry with me, what I wish to get over and move on from. I write these burdens on paper, then burn them into a crisp as I release that weight. Thirdly, I write down what I am making space to receive and what I’d like to welcome into my life by letting these burdens go. This a point where a theme word begins to emerge. Finally, I align my dreams for the future with small seasonal objectives that consider my seasonal tendencies. After discovering my seasonal inclinations and patterns, I make to sure set goals that will act as guideposts along my journey in the new year.
My Reflections & Intentions exercise is rooted in my seasonal living practice that I call Inner Gardening, and this reflective process in particular is my Winter practice. Inner Gardening is the concept of tending to our souls the same way we tend to our garden beds throughout the year. By performing certain tasks during different seasons, and taking cues from Mother Nature, we inspire and support the growth of the land we walk on, as well as the growth of our rooted souls. I share my outline, complete with thought provoking questions and a step by step guide that you can download for free from my archive (subscribe to get access). This outline illuminates your process of reflecting, releasing, receiving, and aligning, so your new year can be more intentional and connected to nature. Any time of year is a great time to reset and refresh, and anytime of year a great time to tend the gardens within. Although, the start of a new solar cycle at the Winter Solstice, or during the slow days preceding New Year’s presents a wonderful opportunity to dive deep into this process if cultivating a slow and seasonally aligned lifestyle.
P.S. While drinking copious amounts of tea and writing pages upon pages of notes as I delved into this process for myself, I’ve discovered that my theme for 2020 is Magic. I intend to take myself (and life in general) less seriously. I am ready to open myself up to more playtime, laughter, enchantment, whimsical creativity, mystery, wonder and fun. Like a journey through an enchanted storybook forest, I’ll walk my path with more childlike fancy. I wish to discover the wisdom and joy that resides somewhere between the blurred lines of fantasy and reality, between work and play, between seriousness and wonder, and between the roles of maturity and youthfulness. Through each season, I’ll be befriending the sprouting acorn just as much as the weathered old oak, and the mundane just as much as the magic. I’ll weave this word into my home and work and revisit it time and time again as I create, connect, and evolve during my next season of growth.
What is your theme for the new year?
