This blog discusses entering 2021 with finding your word that defines the quality of what you want to create in the new year. Instead, of setting measurable goals that often set us up for failure…what if we imagined how our life might be if we knew what we wanted to create.
Welcome 2021!!! The start of a new year sparkles with promises of letting go of old habits and taking on new ones that promote healthier habits. Marketing moves from consumerism of holiday gifts to such things as weight loss programs, gym memberships, home fitness equipment, etc. We are bombarded with messaging that to have MORE is exactly what we need to feel better and by the way…you also need to DO MORE in order to get results. I used to “buy” into this thinking which reinforced an old personal pattern of believing that I wasn’t enough. In Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, I, 16 there is a teaching that signs of progress with yoga illustrate that you are less attached to material things, less dependent on approval of others and connecting more toward your TRUE SELF! (See the Sutra below)
Last year, I explored a different approach…one that made a HUGE difference in how I felt all year long. I came up with a WORD that sparked inspiration for me on many different levels. This word informed choices I made from the physical aspects of my life to relationships that I valued. I learned what I needed to add into my life which naturally crowded out what wasn’t serving me. My word came through reflection during and after my personal yoga practices as well as sitting with the post digestive effect of how the word felt. I wasn’t intellectualizing my word but rather listening for what I needed. I was listening with “the ear behind the ear and the heart behind the heart” to quote lyrics by Michael Beckwith. The word I heard last year was VITALITY!
This looked like…
dancing every chance I got = around the house, while cooking, Motown Monday’s @ the Highball(before COVID), CAR CLUBBIN’ (yep, dancing in my car), grocery stores and in my beloved dance class
going for walks several times a week at the lake (not to lose weight but to feel vitality)
connecting to people that awaken my spirits and allow me to express myself fully (building capacity)
work in ways that engage my creativity
expanding my education
spending time in nature (especially by bodies of water)
eating foods that feel good to my body (not just on my tongue) and increase prana (life force)
of course, my yoga and mediation personal practice
This is what my word gave me…a roadmap to knowing what quality I wanted to create. It uplifted and supported me rather than mirroring the feeling that I wasn’t enough.
And now…I give you my WORD for 2021!
I am keeping the word VITALITY and adding in…the word VALUED.
I am going for a double this year!
What does it mean to feel valued? This is a question I will be exploring in working with the Vijnamaya or character layer of the Vedic model, Pancamaya which teaches that there are 5 layers of health. (Physical, energetic, mind, character, and inspiration) I will ask myself, “Does this person or work opportunity increase my value and support my True Self?”
I want to increase my reach with Yoga Therapy through teaching, private work, and presentations and trainings. Aligning with where you feel valued can reinforce self-worth and the confidence it takes to be of service to others.
So…there you have it friends! Vitality is established and I definitely want to continue that quality. Valued is now my laser beam into some deeper work.
This song has become the soundtrack of my life, “In this Love together” by Michael Beckwith. Open this link to hear his song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR6QciVsFCw
CAR CLUBBIN’…here we come!
And… Sutra, I. 16 (using Mukunda Stiles interpretation)
tatparam purusa khyateh guna vaitrsnyam
tat = that (non-attachment)
param = highest, ultimate
purusa = True Self
khyateh = due to the realization, knowledge
guna= primal desire
vaitrsnyam = lack of desire, indifference
Translation from studies with my teacher, Gary Kraftsow many years ago… signs of real progress with yoga illustrate that you are less attached to material things, less dependent on approval of others and connecting more toward your TRUE SELF!