So many times we hear or read statements like: "Every day we are given a new opportunity to begin again with a clear sense of purpose."
But what can this really mean to us? Let's look deeply into the possibilities that this phrase presents to us: "At any given time we are only one decision away from changing our life entirely." This is an extremely powerful statement! Upon the deathbed I've heard people say, "if I could only have another day, another chance at life,... the things I would say and do...." Because even being given one more day holds the hope of potential. And given this sense of potential for another chance at life we are opened up to step in ANY direction and make something new and fresh happen with our life. On New Year's Day we traditionally begin with a new intention for ourselves. "Here's a chance to make some real changes" we think. And we say our resolutions with every intention of pulling it off. Of succeeding in making the big changes which will lead to our happiness. Or at least a bit closer to the happy life we envision for ourselves. But here's the rub, we often carry the "old" life and all it's trappings with us into the "new". How can we begin with a clean slate if we start with the old messy one from last year? It's like we put all of our garbage into a container, put a lid on it, and drag it into our new year and our clean intentions. Then, as we begin to put our new life into action, we kick the lid off the can (because it's filled with every comfortable old friend that we're used to) and allow it to spill all over our clean slate. It may be a bit at a time, but before we know it we see that a fat trail of muck from our past is following us and is beginning to swallow us up. It's depressing and disappointing and so we give up and say we will try again in a month, maybe spring time, or in the summer, or fall! - fall is always a great time to start! But it just gets too big and we find ourselves not only back to our old routines but now we are beating ourselves up for what we feel we failed in. So, the solution? I suggest we start with Mindfulness meditation because when we learn how to be mindful in meditation we learn to become mindful in our daily life. Mindful of how we walk through the day. Mindful of the negatives that we want to drop from our lives and mindful of the positives that we want to add. In this way we can be gentle with ourselves and begin slowly, treating ourselves with compassion when we find that we fall into our old routines. And we can begin again and again in each new moment. There's a saying in Alcoholics Anonymous-"It will take time to clear away the wreckage. Though old buildings will eventually be replaced by finer ones, the new structures will take years to complete.” And we do this "One day at a time". Little by little we begin to see that by practicing Mindfulness with an open heart toward ourselves we make the small changes that lead to the bigger changes. Eventually we leave the clutter and garbage of our past behind and step into the openness of the beauty that was always there in front of us. We just couldn't see it through all the muck we held onto. “When I stopped living in the problem and began living in the answer, the problem went away.” - The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous Wishing each of you positive changes during this new year. May you view each moment as a potential to step in ANY direction to make something new and fresh happen in your life. *Joanie Lane is a Meditation Teacher, Reiki Master/Teacher, Spiritual & Life Coach, and Healing Movement Qigong Leader. She lives in Kelseyville, Ca. at her meditation center "A Positive Light". For more information visit her website at apositivelight.com **These are original writings by Joanie. Any quotes by others that have been included have been identified.
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