Easing into the New Year…
When I first started my healing journey one of the first things I did was commit to ME. That opened the door to committing to only taking in what nurtured my soul. As a student of life long learning, I have been exposed to many traditions and teachings. The best advice I ever received from one of my mentors was…
“Take what speaks to you and bless the rest”
and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. My healing journey has been guided by my Spiritual Path and though it’s deeply rooted in Celtic Spirituality and Native American Shamanism, it is very eclectic. I’ve created new traditions and practices that are in line with my essence.
“Spirituality is not what you believe or know. Spirituality is the way you live life moment to moment , day to day. The way you do what you do and the energy, quality, sincerity, determination, attention, character you carry for living your life….The truth is in how you walk through each moment and the footprints and energy you leave as you go.” ~ Lee McCormick
The first thing I invited into my life…
were Rituals. The difference between rituals and routines is that a ritual is a practice done with mindful, purposeful intent not just for the mere reason to get something done. Moving through my journey with intent reminds me to align with life. The most empowering ritual for me has been creating Sacred Space, it’s at the core of my healing journey. Just taking a few minutes each morning to connect to my higher-self and the elements, before I start my day, makes a huge difference. A difference in how I move through and show up in the world. So, I created an eCourse on how to Create and Maintain Sacred Space. You can preview the eCourse and explore the mini journal for FREE HERE.
There have been…
many new rituals, I’ve created along the way. Like, as a family, we create Prosperity Bread, as we do every new year to usher in the year. Filled with prayer and intention with every braid. We’ve been doing this since my husband and I’s first New Year 17 years ago.
I also do some personal New Year’s rituals…
As a way to invite Sacred Play, playfulness and creativity, into my life. For the past 8 years, I’ve chosen a word of the year to live into. We all have experienced making resolutions only to have them fade away and be forgotten 3 months later. Resolutions didn’t work for me and in the end, they were another way to judge myself for not being enough. Instead of a tool to go against yourself, when you choose a word or words to live into, they become your allies on your journey. They are your inspiration throughout the year. And if you are like me, you may find you forget them only to have them show up somewhere along the way. That’s when you get that Aha moment where you truly feel the wisdom in why you chose the word(s). For me, they have been so much more empowering and magickal then setting Resolutions. There are plenty of sites to support you in finding your word but I was introduced to this process by Susannah Conway and I love how she walks you through a self-exploratory process.
Once I’ve decided on my word(s) I invite creativity. Throughout the years I’ve stamped my word on metal, painted it on feathers and even created Word Canvases. The goal is to engage your creative self and play!
The last two years, inspired by Danielle Laporte Core Desired Feelings, I’ve also created iPhone wallpapers so I can see all the words I’ve chosen, as well as the symbol for the year. This was last year…
I also invite a Guiding Animal Spirit and I do a card spread, pulling a card for each month. It’s a way to bring more play into my life.
How do you ease into the New Year?