Welcome 2014! I’m feeling a fresh bout of enthusiasm and inspiration
for the unfolding year, envisioning travel, yoga workshops and a renewed sense
of self. I am more than eager to spend time in quiet and listen to my heart’s
desires, then focus on manifesting them into a reality.
I relish this tuning in and planning process, but it can also easily
push me into a future that appears to shine and glitter much more than my
present. Luckily, last year’s decision to set intentions, instead of goals,
gently reminds me to stay rooted in the present while I stretch and muse on
future manifestations.
So, with a foot in the present, I move forward into 2014 by looking backward at 2013. I revisit the three intentions I set this time last year and decide to freshen them up for the upcoming year.
So, with a foot in the present, I move forward into 2014 by looking backward at 2013. I revisit the three intentions I set this time last year and decide to freshen them up for the upcoming year.
I intend to stay connected with my
breath.
Treating myself to conscious breaths, even if it were just a few, was
the powerful tool that allowed me to reconnect, become aware, let go and simply
be as I maneuvered the transition from finishing undergrad to starting my first
“real world” job. I’m a natural daydreamer – I bounce around in my imagination more
than I do on my toes – and just being with a few cycles of breath would
reawaken me to my surroundings and give me the space to witness my feelings and
thoughts. Therefore, when I needed to speak and take action, I did feel more
centered and capable of handling any potential outcomes. So, yes, I am looking
forward to cultivating a richer relationship with my breath.
I intend to develop and listen to
my intuition.
I’ve tweaked this one just a bit. Last year I intended to be my
authentic self, and this year I’m continuing by strengthening my connection to
that inner voice, that inner seer, if you will. I rely on my intuition to
gather information about my surroundings and relationships more than I do on
what would be perceived with my five senses and logic. The times I have
listened to my intuition have been rewarding experiences: I spoke my truth
clearly; I showed up “serendipitously” at the right time and space to meet a
new person I needed to meet, or to see a friend who uplifted my spirits; I
avoided eating a nut (heads up, I’m super allergic) in what seemed to be a
friendly, benign dish, and the list could roll on and on. The moments where my
thinking mind overrules my intuition’s whispers are the times I regret sending
the email, take a wrong turn down a dead end street, and force myself to be
social and just feel bone tired afterward. I’m intending to have fewer of these
“I knew better” episodes by breathing consciously (intention #1 at work), to
develop a deeper ability to listen and act on my intuition.
I intend to nurture love for
myself.
Last year I set the intention to be compassionate toward myself, and
honestly, I wasn’t compassionate, I was cruel. In fact, that’s the intention I
forgot about and ironically, desperately needed to remember. In the summer, I weathered
a couple of unexpected emotionally combative arguments that left me feeling
unaccepted, judged and not seen. These feelings were intensified because the
people I argued with were those I loved and expected to be supportive. It’s my
understanding that our thoughts impact our bodies. These painful episodes left
me feeling extremely sensitive to my surroundings and provoked an inward
struggle for self-acceptance. This struggle revealed itself physically when my
complexion suffered an allergic reaction to some “all natural” products and I
then had a tangible reason to feel unaccepted and judged by a society that
prizes flawless skin. My inner critic attacked with claws, and the thought
threads about inadequacies and not being worthy repeated themselves with a
vengeance. As I write this, though, I have to say, and this is true, that I am
grateful for that experience, because it unearthed self-loathing, and it needed
to come out. Once I recognized this self-hatred, and voiced it (and voiced it
to people who love me), I began to see the inner child who was crying for love
and acceptance.
This year I intend to love and accept myself and start by reading Brene Brown’s The Gifts of Imperfections, a Christmas gift from a beloved friend. Brene Brown is a shame researcher who speaks on vulnerability and living wholeheartedly. I first discovered her through a TED Talk and after the universe did some more of her name-dropping, I took the hint and am now am embarking on the path of healing by reading her book.
In the NOW: pure winter sunshine illuminates the room, the warmth cradles my neck
and cascades down into my hair. I’m breathing in these sunrays and surrounding
2014’s intentions with this January shine. The New Year is already golden.
P.S.- Recommend listening to Brene Brown’s TED Talk on
Listening to Shame. Well worth the listen.
http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_listening_to_shame.html
