Can you believe it’s the end of 2018 already? Is it just me or does it feel like it was only yesterday that we were in January?!
One thing for sure is that we can’t control time. We can plan with it, count it, watch it go by, but we can do absolutely nothing to stop it. So rather than fight it, we have to flow with it to make the most of our lives.
Our ancestors who lived by the seasons were more in tune with the natural cycles they lived in. They had no choice but to stay in the flow of their environment and follow their own natural rhythms – whether it was the daily rhythm of the sun, gathering life sustaining food and supplies during the daylight and resting in the darker hours; or the yearly rhythm of the earth’s rotation around the sun and the progression through summer and winter and everything in between.
They weren’t tied to a ‘9 – 5’ schedule: wake up, breakfast, off to work, lunch, home from work, dinner, bed…do it all over again! Our current schedules leave little time to connect with the environment around us, others, or even ourselves. No wonder we have such high incidences of life-threatening diseases and mental health problems such as depression – this kind of a lifestyle isn’t very sustainable for anyone long term.
While the very reality of our lives these days means we cannot escape our working days, there are still things that we can do to not get swept up in the daily grindstone and to stay connected to ourselves and the world around us. The end of our calendar year provides the perfect opportunity to pause and reflect on the things that are or are not working in your life. And a new year provides the perfect opportunity to take action where necessary to start moving towards the life that you really want to be living.
What can you do? 5 ways to get ready for 2019:
- Write a list of all the things you are grateful for experiencing in 2018. What have been the blessings in your life this year? What has made you smile or cry with joy? Who has been important to you? What lessons have you learnt? What did 2018 show you about your life?
- Write a list of the things that you would like to release in 2019. What held you back in 2018? What were your fears? Where were you reactive? What needs to change over the next 5 years (starting now!) to get you on track to the life you want to be living?
- Write a list of the things you love doing. Make a commitment to yourself to do more of those things in the coming months. See this as a type of bucket list. Today we are all a little closer to the day we are going to die, so why put off any longer those things that you have been wanting to do? It doesn’t have to be anything huge – it could be that you want to try a new recipe each month, or join an art class, or go camping. The most important thing is to identify those things that bring you joy and make time for them in your life.
- Get clear on your values. Your current set of values may not be the same as who you were in the past. It can be useful to identify and understand your current values to ensure you are actually living by them. What is important to you? What do you stand for? What are you truly passionate about? Does your job/home/friends/(fill in the blank) align with your values? If not, what changes need to be made to rectify that?
- Spend some time in nature. Our natural environment can help us re-balance, especially after being tucked away in an office or on a computer all day/week. Nature has so many gifts to offer us: simply breathing in fresh air can be re-energising! If you’re feeling a bit frazzled by all the demands at the end of the year – take a walk, smell the roses, plant your feet on the ground, take a few deep breaths and see all the beautiful sights and colours that surround you.
As a new year begins, a new adventure begins. Live it well. May 2019 bring you all that you could wish for…and so much more.
Blessings on your journey, Michelle Teunon
‘You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream’- CS Lewis