I follow a personal tradition of honoring the first day with stillness instead of productivity. Yesterday was filled with slow coffee, a good book, uplifting documentaries I’d been meaning to watch, a lovely dinner, and a quiet night that felt exactly right.
I enjoyed it so much that I’ve decided this won’t just be a New Year’s practice anymore. I’m going to do this on the first day of each month—a day that gives me permission to do nothing, reset my energy, and begin again gently.
You don’t have to wait for a new year to start fresh.
I believe that this year is going to be one of awakening. I believe that the Universe already has plans in place for us, that everything that’s happening in our lives right now is the beginning of what’s to come. It’s like a playbook for a football game hoping to get a touchdown. I believe that what’s happening in life right now is preparing us for what’s to come.
And I mean that in a good way.
I choose to believe that my PTSD is here for a reason. I believe it’s to show me that I still have more healing that needs to be done. I have decisions and choices to make that I may not have been able to before. Whatever the reason, there’s a lesson in it.
We’re only a few days into 2025 and I can feel that change is coming. My intuition has been on an all-time high for quite some time and now is no exception. I think that this year is the one in which we have to look deeply into ourselves and see why we’re feeling the way that we are. I know that many of us are feeling “out of sorts” and I’m one of them. I’m trying to figure out why I am.
I think that I’m still trying to find my place here in Florida. I felt valued back in Jersey but not so here. I had a great job, I wrote every day and I was blessed to see the ocean every single morning on the way to work. My book launches were filled with awesome people and I had a group where I was helping others to write and get published. It’s different here and that’s one of the reasons I feel “out of sorts.”
So this year I’m doing what it takes to find my place and my value here in Florida. Writing is like breathing to me and I need to find that motivation again. I’m sharing my most intimate feelings and thoughts with you because I know that I’m not the only one in the world that feels like I do and that together we can support one another through such times.
The house is so quiet tonight and my thoughts are loud so I decided to write them. Thank you for “listening” to them.
Can you believe that this year is almost over? Time sure flies by quickly and I find that the older I get, the faster it flies, which is why it’s even more important to make my life as simple as possible so that I have more time to enjoy life.
Sounds wonderful doesn’t it? It does to me and I know that in order for a “simpler” kind of life to happen, we need to put in a little bit of effort.
One of the things I love to do at this time of year is to begin a journey of “decluttering” my life and I’m not just talking about materialistic things. We need to declutter our minds as well. Any type of clutter can make for stress and imbalance in our lives and when we take the time to “declutter” we’re taking care of ourselves. It’s also a wonderful opportunity to clean out the clutter from the past year to make space for all the “new” things that the upcoming year will bring.
It’s a good time to clean out your drawers and closets to donate items that someone else may get better use of. It’s also a great time to go through your stacks of papers, clean out your in-boxes, and re-evaluate your friends list on social media. It’s time to get rid of that stagnant energy so that you can replace it with exciting and positive energy.
It’s a good time to clear out the clutter that exists around you and within you. It’s time to open up space for new and exciting adventures to happen.
Here’s to getting ready for the New Year, one that I hope is filled with lots of love, happiness and promise for all of you!
Anne Dennish - Writer/Author 