If I had to choose a personal motto for 2019, it would be "Hold Fast, Stay True." An old sailors term that means hold tight to the lines when ship is aloft in bad weather or you WILL go overboard. Face the storm with courage and strength. Keep your ship upright no matter what. So what felt like one Tsunami after another, I did just that with faith that the waters would be smooth again. But now it is time to out with the old stories and in with the new!
Every New Year, I like to clean house physically, mentally, and energetically. This helps me to get clear and make room for new energies, ideas, inspiration, opportunities, and adventures to come-a-knocking. Without being conscious and thoughtful about what I want out of life and what I want to create, I'm simply at the mercy of fate. Just floating around letting life happen to me. I'm telling the Universe that I don't care, I'm small, undeserving, and unworthy of anything extraordinary. No thanks! Here are some ways to clear out the old and start thinking about what you truly want out of life and become the captain of your soul.
1. Clean Up. Messy house, messy mind. Declutter, organize, and donate everything that you haven't worn or used in the past year. Clean out drawers and closets. Remove garbage and dust. This can be a process so go easy on yourself. Now you are ready to do an energy clearing of your space.
2. Space Clearing. This should be done often as we are constantly bringing other peoples energy into our homes that attach to us throughout the day as well as our own. As humans, our emotions can run hot and that heaviness gets trapped in our physical bodies, things, walls, etc. creating a dense atmosphere and blockage of Chi/Life Force Energy flow. Clearing can be done many ways but my favourites are smudging with sage or banging a drum. Start by clearing your own energy, then go room to room in all directions. Don't forget to smudge any objects that you feel need clearing. I like to open window while I'm doing this to allow the flow of fresh air and energy, and to allow the smoke from the sage to clear. We don't want to have to explain what we are doing to the Fire Department.
3. Fire Burning Release. Choose at least 1 thing you would like to let go off that does not serve your higher good. This could be a thing, memory, emotion, experience, or habit. A great way to consciously release something is to write it down, say it out loud, and throw it into the fire. Fire is a powerful transmuter and neutralizer of negative energies. Burn that shit up and release it to the fire gods. Good-bye. See ya. Au revoir, Adios. Arrivederci. This is especially helpful when going through a major life transition. We have to let things go in order to move onward and upward.
4. Vision Board. This is a fun way to get you thinking about what the heck it is you really want out of life. Reality is that life, responsibilities, and commitments can rule the roost and we forget to live life with intent and purpose. What do you value, what brings you joy, what goals do you want to accomplish, where do you want to travel, what's your dream job, what new skill would you like to acquire, what fears do you want to conquer, etc? Grab a bunch of magazines and start cutting and pasting words, phrases, and images that speak to you onto a large poster board. If there are things you want on you vision board that you don't find in a magazine, you can write them on your vision board or print it out from the internet and paste it on there. Hang it in a place you will see often to remind you of what you want to manifest. Energy goes where energy flows. It's really fun looking at your vision board at the end of the year to see what has manifested. I keep mine year after year as some things just take a little longer to come to life. It's also interesting to see how your vision can change and evolve over time.
5. Gratitude Journal. Gratitude is one of the highest vibrating emotions and extremely powerful for manifesting. When we have gratitude for even the smallest of things, that vibration goes out to the Universe and comes back tenfold. It's called The Law of Attraction. It shows the universe that we are not living from a place of lack and therefor, we attract more abundance. It also helps to train our minds to focus more on the positive things in our lives and less on the negative.
6. Meditation. I can't say enough about how powerful meditation can be. It clears the mind, relieves stress and anxiety, and if you get really good at it, you can tap into some pretty interesting cosmic shit. I like to think of it as clearing the gateway from the heavens to the mind in order to allow messages and inspiration from the higher self or spirit to flow through. Praying is talking to god. Meditation is listening to God (so to speak). It's amazing what can come through when the mind is quiet and when sitting in stillness. Sometimes I use meditation to visualize an outcome, for healing, and for positive affirmations.
7. Make a New Playlist. Gather all the songs that uplift, spark joy, and make you wanna dance. Turn up the volume and dance dance dance your ass off. This is a great pick-me-up when feeling in the dumps. If you're in the car, throw on your shades, turn up the volume, crack the window, and radiate in your coolness.
8. Read an inspiring book. My favourites this past year were...
Warrior Goddess Training by Heatherash Amara
The Wisdom of the Shamans by Don Jose Ruiz
The Four Agreements by Don Miquel Ruiz
Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola
9. Make your Appointments. If you are a procrastinator like me in this department, just do it. Get a physical, get your eyes checked, see a councillor, a chiropractor, get acupuncture, or any energy healing work that you feel is needed. Listen to the subtle signs from your body before bigger issues transpire.
10. Plan that Trip. Travel is a huge means of expanding ones awareness, consciousness, and mindset. Real life adventure and experience can be your biggest teacher. Let's face it, life can be a huge grind. It's important to subject ourselves to something fun that is out of our everyday reality. Not to mention, you will benefit from the release of dopamine from the excitement and anticipation long before the trip happens. It's a thing.
11. Self Care. Gone are the days of the idea you need to take care others before you take care of yourself. It's a old paradigm and it's not being selfish. Of course there are times when we do this, but not at the cost of exhaustion and burn out. If you're not functioning properly, the world around you won't either. Take care of yourself and know when to say no and listen to what your body and soul needs. Make time for exercise, meditation, reading, a walk, a bath, a hobby, a ritual, dance, energy work, pull on some oracle cards, paint, create something, whatever calls to you...Just do it!
12. Healthy Boundaries. It's time to stand in your power and set boundaries with people who bully, manipulate, take advantage, or energetically drain you. Many of us allow this to happen because we are afraid of standing up for ourselves and afraid of hurting the other persons feelings. It's important to set boundaries to protect yourself and it's also important to do so to let the boundary-crosser know how he/she is crossing a boundary with you. By doing this, you are showing the utmost respect for yourself, in-turn showing others to give you the same respect as well.
Big changes are coming in 2020 and it's going to be good. We can rest easy and ride the waves of this new decade knowing that with each storm we become stronger and smarter in navigating them when we live from a place of consciousness and self-love. Hold Fast, Stay True my friends! And Happy New Year!
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