2011 Reflections

Those who have been regulars to my blog, know that I don't do New Year's Resolutions. Instead I like to reflect on the year gone by and my achievements, which is why this linky party suites me well.

2011, for me, has been a year of much clarity, mostly because it has been so fill off confusion. Sounds like a contradiction right? It really isn't. In 2011, by being extremely clear to start with, then extremely confused, overbooked and complicated, I finally got to a point where I realised what is most important, how to simplify things into what is most important, and how to let go of those that weren't. This all got me to a point of extreme clarity.

If you pressed me however, I would not be able to define this clarity for you. There are no clear cut goals or end marks or anything that I am now setting out to do. What I learned during 2011 is that is is all about the journey. It doesn't really matter which method you use to get yourself home, just as long as you can bring yourself to peace with it, share the experience as you go and always be willing to learn and grow. Of course sometimes we need to move to a place where the view is more to our liking and the energy more conducive to our growth, but in between not moving, opting to move, and actually moving, we always have the choice to be happy and grateful where we are (for where we are is always where we need to be). And that is the experience of the journey which you will always be the master of.

I learned so many things during 2011 (as in actual educational type things), but what I learned most of all is what I myself believe with regards to all the things that I learned. Mostly, I learned that I don't believe that anything fits in a box; Each person's journey is different in this world, so something that works for you, might not work for me. Having said this, I also learned that when you are working towards something specific, it is usually a good idea to start with what worked for someone else as it gives you a point of reference from where you can go forth and explore what works for you more specifically, whereas just jumping in wherever usually leaves you floundering.  

I also learned that you have to keep on learning. This world is always changing, don't ever accept that what you know now will remain constant or else you just might find yourself being the idiot that is denying Newton's gravity theory or Galileo's Earth-Revolves-Around-The-Sun Theory, or even the one that maintains that the world is flat. If you don't open yourself to the wonder of our ever changing world, our ever changing knowledge, you could well end up being that person. And who wants to be that person? You don't have to know everything in this world. Heck, we find out things so fast these days, your knowledge would be obsolete in a day or two. No. Rather just be willing to accept that when something you did not know before crosses your path, it might be a memo from The Universe on something that you need to know, or realise, NOW.  Also, being open now, allows you to remain open your whole life, whereas denying something now, starts the process of closing yourself off (the main reason why old people can't learn new things like computers).

Towards the end of 2011, my greatest gift was in simplifying my life, learning what was important enough to keep and which things, no matter how much I loved them, I just had to let go off. Sacrifice is probably the word I am looking for. But despite having had to give up a few things and let go of a few others, I also learned that the joy of having time for that which truly enriches my life, far outweighs the sacrifice that had to be made. Of course, there is also the truth that true joy lies in the simplest of things, so by cutting a few ideas about "that which would make me happy if only I didn't feel burnt out by having to do it all", I got to revel in the few things left over that truly brought me joy. 

In the last few weeks of December, I also put in some physical energy and just "got things done". For almost the whole month, I did not relax in front of the television when tired; I did not make excuses for not doing things; I took stock of what needed to change, and I made those changes; I did energy meditations and yoga even when I was dead tired (which went a long way to reminding me that yoga solves a lot of problems, especially fatigue); I made healthy changes, and yeah, Sparky is puffed up about a few things, but like I told him: You don't need to do this if you don't want to, but you want to because you have been asking about it, feeling uncomfortable with the way things are and the changes are just .. well, changes - now you just have to ask yourself how much do you want it. 

So we did what we had to: Some mental clearing; Some physical endeavors; Some routine changes and adaptions; some attitude changes about certain things and wallah! We (I) felt our space open up, both personally and as a family, for a whole new range of experiences to come our way in the new year. 

The energy build up towards 2012 was massive, and I participated in a host of wondrous events to celebrate all of these things, and felt the collective consciousness becoming more and more empowered. This year (more so than 2011) is filled with promises and expectations, but that's another story.