I am glad that 2015 is behind me. Don't get me wrong; it was a very good year in so many ways. It was also a challenging year, one of big decisions, sifting through life's clutter to focus on the essential and adjusting one's compass accordingly.
I turned 49 in November at the end of months of discussion about refurbishing life along with my immediate family. It required plenty of soul searching, listening, and reflection. It required plenty of flexibility and compromise and personal evolution. It has resulted in plenty of personal growth, which I deeply value.
So, 2016 is the year all of these decisions will be implemented, beginning with a move so that my husband can pursue a new opportunity at another university two states south, and I can pursue my interest in small business in another college town. My younger daughter will begin high school there. My older daughter will be accepted to college.
Change is certainly afoot and the New Year began with all the preparations for selling our beloved home which hits the market this week. I was prepared for the work involved but somehow forgot how stressful change can be. I am reminded why people stay in one place and can't begrudge anyone coming to that conclusion, but I am incredibly proud that we are willing to accept a new challenge and allow life to throw new opportunities our way without ducking.
So, I resolve like May Sarton the following in 2016:
1) To declutter both personal possessions and personal baggage that sap energy and joy from the present.
2) To approach life's challenges with humor and an open heart; to try new experiences and embrace differences.
3) To care for myself and my family so that our essential needs are met and our core connections remain steadfast.
4) To remember that to whom much is given, much is expected, requiring a life of integrity and grit; gratitude requires daily practice.
5) To cultivate friendships both old and new spread near and far so that the earth might truly be my garden. (I contribute this notion to Goethe who said, “To know someone here or there with whom you can feel there is understanding in spite of distances or thoughts expressed that can make life a garden.”)
6) To turn to nature for renewal and remember that still waters return soon enough.
I turned 49 in November at the end of months of discussion about refurbishing life along with my immediate family. It required plenty of soul searching, listening, and reflection. It required plenty of flexibility and compromise and personal evolution. It has resulted in plenty of personal growth, which I deeply value.
So, 2016 is the year all of these decisions will be implemented, beginning with a move so that my husband can pursue a new opportunity at another university two states south, and I can pursue my interest in small business in another college town. My younger daughter will begin high school there. My older daughter will be accepted to college.
Change is certainly afoot and the New Year began with all the preparations for selling our beloved home which hits the market this week. I was prepared for the work involved but somehow forgot how stressful change can be. I am reminded why people stay in one place and can't begrudge anyone coming to that conclusion, but I am incredibly proud that we are willing to accept a new challenge and allow life to throw new opportunities our way without ducking.
So, I resolve like May Sarton the following in 2016:
1) To declutter both personal possessions and personal baggage that sap energy and joy from the present.
2) To approach life's challenges with humor and an open heart; to try new experiences and embrace differences.
3) To care for myself and my family so that our essential needs are met and our core connections remain steadfast.
4) To remember that to whom much is given, much is expected, requiring a life of integrity and grit; gratitude requires daily practice.
5) To cultivate friendships both old and new spread near and far so that the earth might truly be my garden. (I contribute this notion to Goethe who said, “To know someone here or there with whom you can feel there is understanding in spite of distances or thoughts expressed that can make life a garden.”)
6) To turn to nature for renewal and remember that still waters return soon enough.
New Year Resolve
May Sarton
The time has come
To stop allowing the clutter
To clutter my mind
Like dirty snow,
Shove it off and find
Clear time, clear water.
Time for a change,
Let silence in like a cat
Who has sat at my door
Neither wild nor strange
Hoping for food from my store
And shivering on the mat.
Let silence in.
She will rarely speak or mew,
She will sleep on my bed
And all I have ever been
Either false or true
Will live again in my head.
For it is now or not
As old age silts the stream,
To shove away the clutter,
To untie every knot,
To take the time to dream,
To come back to still water.
