Who are you becoming in 2017 and what is your word?

Who are you becoming in 2017? What’s stirring in you right now? What does it feel like?

This is an exercise in naming your word for 2017.   By this, I mean to name the quality that you want to be operative in your body and mind this year.   If you’re not sure, I encourage you to spend some time reflecting and journaling about it.  Make sure you don’t just ask your head.  Ask your heart and body as well. Make sure there is agreement and integration. 

To do this, close your eyes.  Pause soften and breath.  Release the lower half of your body into the support of the earth.  Exhale down into your sits bones, your pelvis, your legs and your feet.  Feel the earth beneath you.  Then inhale, and draw the breath up through the central channel of the body, what yogis call the shushumna nadi.  Take the breath all the way up to the crown of your head, toward the sky.  Now, spend a few breath cycles moving the energy up and down the length of your spine to clear this channel.  After a few rounds of breath, inhale and breath into the front of your body and feel into your individual desire to evolve and move forward in life.  Then, exhale and breathe into the back side of your body.  Lean back energetically, feeling into the mystery that is the universe.  The universe has your back.  Create an attitude and inner stance of receptivity and curiosity.  Notice how you feel.  Notice what is stirring in you.  How is that you desire to feel in this next year?  Drop that question down into your body and notice how the body responds.  Let the answer bubble up without forcing it and take notice of the words that arise. 

The word could be:

CLARITY, EMPOWERMENT, EASE, EXPANSION, COMPASSION, COMMUNICATION, CONNECTIVITY, HUMILITY, LEADERSHIP, WISDOM, EMPATHY, STABILITY, GROUNDEDNESS, SELF-CARE, KINDNESS…  or..?

What is the word for you? Once you feel it, really feel it.  Taste it. Smell it.  See it. Touch it.  Feel into it from a cellular level.  Name it and embrace it. Write it down.  Put it in a prominent place where you can see it every day. 

Then, create for yourself a plan so that you can make this word truly operative.

In 2016, STRETCH was the word that was most operative in my physiology.  While I didn’t consciously name this word at the beginning of the year, I did certainly create the circumstances that would ensure that this word was operative and I own that this was my word.  In 2016, I stretched myself a lot.  I grew and expanded in many areas of my life professionally, personally and in family life.  I got intimate with my growing edges.  I got intimate with the exhilaration, the prickliness, the discomfort and the thrill of stretching my beyond my perceived limits.  The stretching wasn’t always comfortable, but it was totally worth it.  I learned a lot and I’m satisfied with what I accomplished, what I learned, and how I grew.  

While STRETCH is in large part how we evolve, and while I still expect to STRETCH myself in 2016, it is not the word I am choosing to be most operative in 2017.  After a period of stretching, one needs a bit of a break.  So, my word for 2017 is EASE.  This is not to say that I expect to sit around (although I have been choosing to spend more evenings cozy on the couch lately and I LOVE that), but I do intend to create more EASE in my life.

EASE happens naturally for me when there is stability, predictability, boundaries and lastly, when I consciously take the time to soak in the good.  Here is my action plan for making EASE operative in 2017:

• Stablize the new structures I put in place last year. This year I will spend more time stabilizing what has already been created rather than creating new things.  For example, I’m stabilizing my 10 week program, concretizing our weekly family meeting, and solidifying some of the business structures I created in 2016.  Familiar and stable structures invite an easeful way of being with oneself and with the world.
• Develop a predictable plan for my day, my week and for my year.  As someone who is self-employed, there is no one telling me how to do my calendar.  It’s up to me.  And, for creatives, sticking to a plan can be hard.  But, when I create a predictable schedule, and do what my calendar tells me to do, there is less stress in my day. Less stress = more EASE.
• Be crystal clear with my boundaries between work and down and family time so that my mornings, evenings and weekends can be easeful.  Again, as a self employed creative person, it is very easy to blur the line between work and home life.  For EASE to be operative, those lines need to be clear. Last year, I let go of my Sunday morning yoga class at the Yoga Loft.  It was a hard decision to make because I had taught that class for many years and I love the students and beautiful space, but it was the best thing for me and for my family.  It allowed me to reclaim Sundays as an intentional family day.  I feel the same way about the boundaries I set around my mornings and evenings.  Making time in the mornings and evenings for meditation, movement, meals, reading and connecting fills my life with EASE and comfort.
• Soak in the good.  This is the EASEFUL dessert that I get to eat througout the day!  Soaking in the good is the small act of stopping to notice and to feel what is pleasant, enjoyable, beautiful, sweet, and delightful and to soak the experience in with all my senses.  Like noticing the light filtering through the trees, really tasting the flavors of my chai tea, enjoying the warm and soft touch of my alpaca shawl.  These are things I can do throughout my day.  Just taking 30 second to be fully present with an enjoyable experience and to feel it fully is a powerful way to wire EASE into my bodymind. 

Who am I becoming? I am becoming someone who chooses to cultivate the habits and conditions that make her feel EASEFUL in her life and physiology.

OK, that’s my word and my plan for 2017.  What about you? What is your word?

Drop me a line and share who you are becoming in 2017 and what that feels like!
 
Namaste,
Annie