With the ringing in of each New Year, the air quickly fills with drastic resolutions and self-made promises for change, most of which will go completely unfulfilled by year’s end. Make 2016 your break out year, by giving in to yourself and sharing the gift of self-appointed wellness.
Whether this means finding some quiet time to watch an early morning sunrise while sipping a steaming cup of coffee, or finding that cozy corner and comfy chair to read a book you have been putting off for far too long. Maybe your wellness includes scheduling a deep tissue massage to work out all the left over toxins still in your system from 2015.
An understanding of renewed wellness begins with the awareness of learning to “let go” in order to “begin anew” in the New Year. Start the process by intentionally setting dates on your calendar specifically designed to rejuvenate your body, mind and soul. Carving out moments to focus on “you” may appear to be somewhat selfish, but in reality it is exactly the opposite. In fact, allocating time for quiet meditation, reading or simply relaxing is highly recommended for one’s overall health and wellness. In her book, The Gift of Imperfection, Brené Brown writes, “stillness is not about focusing on nothingness; it’s about creating a clearing. It’s opening up an emotionally clutter-free space, while allowing ourselves to feel and think and dream and question.” So how might one create a mental clearing?
Start A Gratefulness Journal
A wonderful way to begin opening a space free of emotional clutter is to begin keeping a daily gratefulness journal. As we enter this New Year together, start by writing down your hopes, dreams and aspirations for the coming months. Date each entry and be sure to include all positive thoughts you are feeling that specific moment, no matter how small and insignificant that may seem at the time. As time passes, you will start realizing just how much beauty exists not only in the world, but in your life as well allowing your soul to feed upon this much needed spiritual nourishment.
Think about the innocent laughter of a small child, a delicate breeze gently brushing past your face, the ardent fragrances of spring, or the majestic rays of a multi-colored sunset. The beauty of the universe surrounds us with a warm embrace that is renewed at the beginning of each new day. This is a promise to all who are willing to open their arms and receive this embrace. By accepting this truth, you are allowing your life to be filled with a peace that can only come from learning to live in the present moment. Soon you will find your notebook is filled with amazing and wonderful blessings, helping to refill and replenish your feelings of wellness.
Begin To Pay It Forward
Once you have found the peace of positivity and centered your focus on being present in each and every moment, you will develop an energy, ability and desire to pay it forward. Seattle counselor, Barbara Witkow, MA describes it the following way, “It’s a circular pattern, something that must keep going. It’s motion. You must keep it moving to make it work best.” So naturally, as the universe replenishes and renews your positivity and wellness each day, your willingness to share this with others will increase as well. But where and how does one start “paying it forward?”
Just the other day, as I was pulling up to the drive thru at my favorite coffee shop, I learned that the customer in front of me had already paid for my drink. What a pleasant surprise! I immediately opted to pay for the order behind me. The cashier at the window seemed to get as much joy out of the action as I did. “Let’s see if we can keep it going,” she enthused. Paying it forward can be as simple as buying someone’s coffee, helping a person in need, offering someone your seat, or holding open a door. Simple gestures, all done with kindness, fill our hearts with happiness and spread good energy to others.
The only requirement to pay it forward? Awareness. In order to pay it forward, one must acquire the vision, desire and attitude to place others before themselves. This may be the single most difficult part of your 2016 wellness story, but it is also the most rewarding. Learning to see the world through the eyes of others. We are not born this way, but if we teach ourselves to view the world through this lens, the universe will pay forward your gestures, blessing your life story in unimaginable ways.
Begin the New Year on a fresh page. It can be a year filled with gratitude, blessings and personal peace, if you are open to learning, loving, listening and living.
