Clearing The Way For The New Year

21 Jan 2011 3 Comments

by Dragon in Lifestyle Tags: beginnings, detoxification, health, Imbolc

This is how I felt by the end of the year.

I don’t know about anyone else, but 2010 was a lousy year for me.  It seemed as if everything I knew and took for granted just fell apart.  In the wake of difficult times, I did what many people do.  I fell into a lot of bad habits and stopped taking care of myself physically and spiritually.  Of course, neglecting myself in such a way has made me feel worse, dragging me into a slump that I am finding hard to shake off.  Normally I look forward to the New Year as an opportunity to start over and to leave old troubles behind.  Filled with renewed energy and a optomistic view, I enjoy lengthy New Year planning rituals.  This year my mind and spirit have felt too heavy to look forward.  It’s as if I’m still dragging the hardships of the old year around, the proverbial albatross around my neck.  I’ve got to find a way to break this!  With Imbolc fast approaching, I can’t think of a better time of year to do a complete lifestyle cleansing.

As part of my Imbolc celebrations, I participate in Pagan Lent, a concept I first read about at School of the Seasons.  According to Waverly Fitzgerald, Pagan Lent is a time to make auspicious changes in our lives by giving up something that is obstructing us and inserting something we want.  I love this concept and have been participating in Pagan Lent for several years.  This year I am going on a lifestyle cleansing.  I will begin with a physical detox plan.  Currently I am researching a plan that will be both effective and safe.  In addition to cleansing my body, I plan to do some space cleaning and stress clearing.  In her fantastic book, Magical Housekeeping, Tess Whitehurst suggests clearing your house of anything that is unused, unloved, or carries memories of unhappy times.  I will be moving into a new apartment midway through the Lent season so this will be a perfect time to follow Tess’s advice.  Once I’ve cleared my body and home, I want to take some time to purify the mind and spirit too.  To this end I plan to introduce some much-needed relaxation activities.  I’m going to begin a daily meditation and yoga routine and make sure that I spend at least 15 minutes outside each day.  It may not sound like a lot, but in the dead of a New England winter, it may be the best I can do.

My goal is welcome the spring as a new person, rejuvenated and renewed.  Then maybe I can start making the most of this great New Year.

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