Soon, a fresh new page on your calendar will be staring you in the face just as you are recognizing a turning point in your life. Although I believe that time is a mental construct, I, too, honor transitional periods. I especially love the ending of one year and the beginning of another. I view them as an opportunity to renew my commitment to be the best me I know how to be as I step across the threshold from one timeframe into another.
Beginning a New Year
New Years’ Eve sees me surrounded by friends, many of whom have been a part of my life for a decade or more. We dance, sing, drum, and eat a blend of healthy and decadent food. Although alcohol is present, I have yet to see anyone get alarmingly sloshed, and I don’t drink at all, by choice. Some of it is a means of keeping my wits about me and some is to be in solidarity with my clients who are in recovery from drug and alcohol abuse or addiction.
I engage in a ritual in which I honor the people and experiences that were not in my life when the year began. I sometimes use a Japa mala to count them. In case you aren’t familiar with them, they are Buddhist prayer beads, like a rosary with 108 beads plus one extra. Practitioners often recite a mantra for each one. I bring to mind the people whose presence in my life has made a difference and then send them love. I express deep gratitude for the experiences that have come my way, sometimes referring to them as ‘blessons’ which is a conjunction of blessing and lesson. If I haven’t been totally thrilled with them, at least they have served to make me stronger and more resilient.
