The New Year

The new year might be seen as an arbitrary holiday - a day like any other, chosen for its significance only because our calendar turns over. I think the new year is special to us because it is a reminder that we, and everything that is, are always in a state of change. New years give us an opportunity to reflect on who we are, what we have experienced, and what we want to accomplish. Through this type of self-reflection comes self-awareness, and awareness is the foundation from which mindful action and mindful choices can arise.

An envirinomental sculpture by Martin Hill & Philippa Jones

Committing to ourselves can ground us in the day-to-day, and can open us to the possibilities that lay outside ourself: for change and transformation. To practice self-awareness is to practice the clarity of thought that can help shape the transitions of our ever-changing lives, because even when we do not have power over our circumstances, we choose to cultivate our outlook, our attitude, and our responses. I have found yoga and meditation to work best for me, but any form of self-commitment can change so much about life: mindful eating, a daily visit to the gym, a weekly mani-pedi. The tool you choose is not as important as it is that you practice self-love, and commit to it.

Expansion, by sculptor Paige Bradley

My commitment to myself for 2014: to cultivate happiness. Such a simple idea on its face, I know that this will require many, smaller commitments: a regular yoga practice, a gentler self-conception, a daily reflection on gratitude.  All things worth striving for!