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End Of Year Personal Reflection

12/15/2020

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As the year is coming to a close a lot of us start looking toward the new year and contemplating our new year's resolutions and determining our goals for the new year. Most of us are looking forward to putting the year of 2020 behind us in hopes of brighter days ahead.

Before we look toward next year, it's a good idea to have closure with the current year by going through an exercise of reflection.
 The temptation might be to not want to reflect on this past year since it's been a particularly challenging one, but those are the times where reflecting can be the most fruitful! 

Here are some things that I recommend reflecting on:

1. What am I grateful for that transpired this past year? Big, small and everything in between. What are all of the things that come to mind that you are grateful for? This gives us some nice perspective as we are reflecting on the year. What are your best memories from the year?

​2. What did I do, create, or experience this year that I'm really proud of? This can be in any area of your life. List out all of the accomplishments and experiences that you are proud of that happened this year. Work through month-by-month or pull out your calendar or your journal and take a look at the daily entries to help jog your memory. You may be surprised at how many you come up with.

3. What mistakes did I make and what did they teach me? 
What were the failures, disappointments or missed opportunities? What didn't go as planned and why? What lessons did I learn that I can leverage from? What was the meaning in those mistakes and lessons? Maybe it's something that's not concrete, like patience, or compassion, or forgiveness. 

4. What were the game changers? The unexpected events that shifted your priorities and focus. How did these impact your year both positively and/or negatively. What did you learn from them? This year the pandemic was an unexpected game changer for all of us. It's served up many lessons, what were those for you?

5. What were the top three things that you were focused on during the year? The three things that you put the majority of your time, energy, effort and resources into? How did these serve you?

6. What am I willing to let go of? What am I currently disciplined to that I desire to let go of? What habits, routines and disciplines are serving me and which ones are not? What old story do I want to rewrite and replace with a new story? An exercise I love that helps me to create the new story is to play the "imagine if" or "what if" game. When playing the "imagine if" and "what if" game there are no limitations, no rules, no restrictions, no logic. You get to freely create using your imagination what you would like the story to look like. 
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I think it's healthy to productively reflect. To productively look back for a bit before setting it aside and moving forward. Not getting stuck in the past, just looking at it to savor the positive and learn from the challenges and allow them to help inform your plans for the new year. 
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How are you feeling about the new year? I know a lot of us have mixed feelings as we are looking out at our world. We want to change, we desire change. How is that change going to happen for you? Are you willing to be the change that you want in the world? Are you willing to do your part to create the change in your own life, in order for that to ripple out into the world? Consider these items as you are closing out this year and looking toward the next. 


As the year comes to a close spend some time in reflection. Grab yourself a cup of hot tea, coffee or cocoa, sit by the fireplace, wrap up in a warm cozy blanket and reflect on the year as it is closing. Savor the year. You've been on this earth one more year in time, what did it mean to you? 

Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season! Enjoy, be well, be happy!
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Let There Be Peace On Earth

12/8/2020

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You're probably familiar with the song Let There Be Peace On Earth. The first verse is..."Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me." Amidst the turmoil in our world, coupled with the holiday season, many of us are craving peace. Let's take a moment to explore the topic of peace. 

Peace is where our true power resides, it's the center of who we truly are at the core of our being. It's where the still small voice inside us gets louder, where we get clarity and courage and find what's most important to us. Prioritizing peace brings us to clarity.

The still small voice is always guiding us and telling us what's right, but often we fight it, we doubt it. That voice is God, it's your direct line and connection to Source. That voice leads us to be our most courageous and creative self. 

Peace is always with us, but we need to chose it and take ownership of our choices. Living your true power means taking that ownership. It means being mindful and intentional about what we are focused on and the choices we are making with our resources.

​There's the saying...Stop spending 100% of your time on 10% of who you are, but expecting 100% fulfillment. When you give your attention to something, you are subscribing to that idea. What you focus on expands. Being self aware of what you are allowing in and out of your attention and being congruent with that is the key to peace.


Inner peace refers to a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep yourself strong in the face of discord or stress. Inner peace calms the mind and allows the path to be illuminated and clear, helping to focus attention on priorities, values and goals. Having clarity is like having a compass; you know where you want to go, you aim for it and commit to the road, trusting that all obstacles are worthy challenges rather than intimidating threats.

This holiday season, let's prioritize peace...our inner peace, the truth of who we are. Peace is knowing that the Source of the universe is by your side and resting in that knowledge. Let's settle in and get cozy there for the holidays. Let's listen to the still small voice of peace until it gets louder and bring us clarity and courage. Let's focus our attention on the peace that is always with us and chose it. I think we can all use some peace on earth and the invitation is to let it begin with me.

“Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.” —Saint Francis de Sales

“Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.” —Dalai Lama

“Nobody can bring you peace but yourself.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

“If you are depressed you are living in the past if you are anxious you are living in the future, if you are at peace, you are living in the present.” —Lao Tzu

"When things change inside you, things change around you." —Unknown 

"Peace can become a lens through which you see the world. Be it. Live it. Radiate it out. Peace is an inside job." —Wayne Dyer 
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The Sacred Pause

12/1/2020

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This time of the pandemic is being referred to by some as ​​The Sacred Pause. A time where we've been forced to slow down and put life on hold. With the mandate to go home and stay home also came an invitation to come home to our inner wisdom, our home, to our source. 

A time to reset, to jump off the hamster wheel of life to reflect and evaluate. The Sacred Pause created a moment in time to come into profound relationship with ourselves, with the truth of who we are. To bring forth and align with our truth, our calling, our values and priorities. 

A time to bring our orientation from external to internal. To strengthen and nurture an interior relationship. Tapping into the riches that reside within us. Cultivating spiritual nourishment to sustain us through all of life's ups and downs. Allowing us to thrive instead of merely survive.

A time to evaluate what's serving us and what isn't. What and who are we giving energy and attention to and whether it's serving us and in alignment with the truth of who we are.

​A time to pause and reconnect with the present moment. Instead of ruminating about what once was, or getting caught up in striving and obsessing and leaning into the future, we can just pause and allow the moment to be.


A time to embrace uncertainty and accept things the way they are. A new capacity to be resilient and to remain uncomfortable for a long sustained period of time. To sit in the uncertainty and be resourceful and creative while holding on to the knowledge that this is impermanent. All things shift and change and this too shall pass.

The invitation of The Sacred Pause is to go inward and come out stronger with a more solid foundation. To have clarity and move forward mindfully and with intention. To be connected to all that is even though we are physically disconnected. To own our brilliance and shine it out brightly. To lead life in an elegant, joyful and loving way.
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