And so it begins. A new year. A new you? Probably not... Yet.
Chances are that we are the exact same person at 12:01am New Years day as we were at 11:59pm New Years Eve. So what is it that changes? What is it exactly that is new? It's hope. For some reason there is a new found hope that arrives with the new year. It begins to get antsy around 11:45pm New Years Eve and bounces out with a hat and a shimmering cane at 12:00am New Years Day.
With hope comes possibility and with possibility comes opportunity. Here is where we find the opportunities to slim down, shape up and begin... again.
And you know what? We can! We can do anything as long as we have hope. With hope, we find the courage, strength and positivity to welcome in what we couldn't welcome in before. With hope we believe. With believing we find faith. With faith all things are possible. Are all things easy? No. They didn't become easy last New Years day or the one before, but they become possible. Why? Because we have hope.
As the New Year begins, we stand tall and optimistic. "This is MY year," we remind ourselves. And we are correct. This IS your year as every year is your year and every day is your day. The New Year just helps us shake off the old as we become ready for the new. Many of us need "the new." We want "the new" and have prayed for "the new." So, let's begin "the new." Today may look alot like the day before New Years Eve. It may even feel the same. Do not be confused. It truly is the same. But today is the present. Today you can do anything your heart desires. There is NOTHING stopping you. And if there is someone or something stopping you then ask yourself this: Why? Why are they stopping you? How are they stopping you? Are you allowing it? Have you allowed it? What would remove them from stopping you? Would this create change? Are you afraid of change? This is the biggest question yet:
ARE YOU AFRAID OF CHANGE?
Chances are that many of us decide NOT to decide because deciding means that certain actions will create change. Change in a relationship, situation, job, family... What happens once it all changes? The unknown. That darn unknown peeks its head up again and paralyzes many of us. But remember, NEW YEAR. New YOU. New hope! New courage! New faith! When we have faith, we just "know" that the unknown will be okay. And it will. Look at all of the unkowns that have taken place before. You have survived them. Situations that you were sure were going to get the best of you turned out to turn you into a survivor. The results that were preferred became victories and those that did not became lessons. You learned. You learn.
This year, take those unknowns and face them IF they are stopping you from achieving what it is that your heart and soul desires. Have the faith and practice this faith. This faith is required so that we can dream big and live our dreams. Learn from the old and find comfort in change. Change can become your best friend. Sometimes the lack of necessary change can become your biggest enemy- the one thing you vow to change each new year. Many of us want immediate results but not too many of us are willing to dig deep and handle the core issues that stop these changes from truly taking place. I often have clients that work hard to discover themselves. They take classes, lose weight, journal, meditate, begin working out, buy new clothes... but they never end the emotionally abusive marriage that they have been in for over 15 years. That same relationship that creates the environment that these "changed" people live in each day. If someone or something is NOT changing and there is a proven pattern that can support this, then you need to be the one to make healthy changes. Many people go to therapy and give it time. I agree with trying. But when there is only one half of the two who are trying and nothing changes then a decision needs to be made and an action needs to take place. There is no such thing as a failure. Think about what you will be failing or quitting? An unhappy and unhealthy relationship? I am all for being a "failure" at walking away from something that is unhealthy. I raise my glass to that. This can include other relationships as well: job, friendships, family, behaviors... Whatever is stopping your from growing needs to be repositioned on or removed from your path.
Walk away from what is unhealthy and create what is healthy... for you. This IS your year. Your year to change what you can and welcome in what is yours. Will it be easy. Not always. It may be emotional and hard. But you have friends and family and support and me. We can get through the changes together. That is the best part about sharing and showing up. When we share, we discover there are many people who are going through the same things that we are. We discover unity and connection.
This year do not be confused. There is nothing magical about January 1st other than that the magic exists within you, every day every year. Because of you, there is magic. When you live life based on your dreams, your heart and your desires, you create magic and you create hope for others just as others have done for you. Happy New Year. Happy New YOU! Happy New Hope and happy discovery of faith. Faith and hope go hand in hand and we are never without either one of them. The only time in which we feel we have lost hope and faith is when we give into our fears. Fears are paralyzing for they go hand in hand with the "unknown." But... the unknown has brought you here. The unknown can bring you to many more beautiful places; places that have been waiting for your arrival.
Love and Light in 2011 and always,
April Claxton
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