A Good Time for Reflection
Ancient Romans named the month of January for Janus, their god of gates, doors and beginnings. Always pictured with two faces—one looking toward the future, the other back at the past—Janus is a fitting symbol for the turning of a new year.
As you step through the doorway from one year to the next, it’s natural to take time to reflect on what you accomplished in the last year and have planned for the next. But this year, instead of just reflecting on the past year or making resolutions for the New Year, consider using this month to take a full inventory your life.
Who are you? What do you believe? What do you really want?
When you discover who you really are, you stop living on auto-pilot and start to live with intention and focus. You begin to make active choices in your life, instead of making excuses or waiting for others to direct you. You begin to live on purpose.
Here are a few questions to get you started. Have a journal or some way to record your thoughts. (Writing by hand keeps you in touch with your breath and your heart.)
• What is aching to be expressed?
• What needs healing?
• What are you afraid of?
• What unique gifts, talents and skills do you bring to the world?
• How are you expressing your talents (or not)?
• What beliefs are holding you back or getting in your way?
• What can you let go of in your life?
• What brings you joy?
• When have you felt most fulfilled?
• What is most important to you?
As you answer these questions, don’t simple think your way through them. Consider the vital information that other “parts” of yourself are giving you. When you use only your head, your experience of yourself and the world is more limited.
Pay attention to what is your body is telling you. If you “listen” it shares a lot of wisdom. When someone yells at you, does your stomach tie up in knots? Do your shoulders stiffen when you’ve been too focused on fulfilling others’ needs and ignoring your own? Notice your body’s messages. If you don’t, the messages get louder and more urgent.
Check in with your heart. The heart is the home of what is most alive in you. What does your heart have to say about your job? About how you spend your days? Does it need more play time? Your heart will tell you what really matters.
Listen to your intuition, your “gut.” Your intuition speaks volumes, but often gets ignored. What is this voice saying now? Have you been trying to drown out a message it’s sending you? Have courage and listen to it. It is far riskier in the long run to ignore your intuition even if its current message is difficult to hear.
Be sure to notice what you already have that is working. Acknowledge and give thanks for the gifts, the beauty and the miracles that are in your life right now. Write them down. Stay focused on those positive feelings and you will draw more blessings into your life. Remember, you are a magnificent creation and joy is your birth right.
Now is the time to start being honest about who you really are and what you really want. Tell the truth. Encouraging those dormant or suppressed parts of you to emerge provides an exhilarating sense of discovery and optimism for the New Year and beyond.
I invite you to share what impact doing the activity had on you. To join the discussion, reply leave a comment.
