My Deepest New Year Wish

(First shared on Jan 19, 2018)

Happy very belated new year, friends & family!

Somehow we’re already halfway through the first month of the year!  

Whether you believe in making new year resolutions or not, you’ve likely taken at least a few minutes to consider some hopes, dreams, and goals for 2018. Many see the start of a new year as an opportunity to start fresh with a clean slate, and feel an extra boost of energy to start making things happen! Or maybe you’ve gotten tired of the ‘new year, new you’ hype and chose to ease into the year and continue the steady walk you were already on. Who said there is a right or wrong way to start the year?! (aside from *everything* on the internet! :P)

A few days before the new year, I took some time to review the past year and how I felt about my life in general. Maybe it was all the holiday treats and travel, but my energy was feeling a little low and my focus scattered. So I did the best thing I know to do when I’m not really feeling myself. I recommitted to a daily meditation practice and morning pages, where you write three continuous pages of anything that’s on your mind, first thing in the morning. Writing the morning pages helped me clear my mind and reduced the stress and anxiety I had over what seemed like an endless To-do list, while the meditations were an opportunity for me to reconnect with my heart and what truly matters to me.    

On the seventh day of meditation, I had a beautiful experience. It suddenly felt as if my spine had grown an extra 2 feet and I had a vision of a breathtaking sunset from atop a large mountain. It occured to me that I was seeing a bird’s eye view of my life on the very last day of 2018. Had I accomplished all of the goals and intentions I set at the beginning of the year? Was I able to cross everything off of my To-do list? Were all of my favorite people standing next to me? It wasn’t clear and that didn’t seem to be the point.

All I knew in that brief moment was the energy that I felt, and it was beaming from the inside out, becoming part of the sunset. It was an intense, yet deeply comforting feeling of peace, patience, and love for myself and all those around me. It didn’t matter what I had or hadn’t accomplished that year, what mattered was that I was truly myself and more able to see and love others for their true selves. It’s a feeling I hope I return to often, and one I hope for everyone to experience in their daily lives.  

I hope this year brings all the opportunity and inspiration to achieve your goals. Yet, my deepest wish is that we all develop a stronger awareness of the energy that we hold within ourselves and how we send it out into the world, with every thought and conversation we have (not just what we say to and about others, but also to ourselves) and every action we take. May this year bring you deeper love and connection, and may you have the best laughs and giggles sprinkled throughout.

I’d love to hear what your plans and intentions are for this year. Just hit reply and type your heart out (feel free to sing and dance your heart out at the same time, too)! :)

With love & gratitude,   

Gissel