Happy Spring Equinox
| Spring is here I don’t usually talk about holidays in my emails to you. It’s not a hard-and-fast rule, just something I noticed. Not because they are not important, but often because I am not focused on them when I sit down to write to you. Partially also because I don’t know which holidays or dates are important to you and which aren’t. Today is the spring equinox, at least here in New York 🙂 It has me thinking about 2 things: balance and new beginnings. Today, the time that the sun is up is equal to the time the sun is down. This perfect balance is something experienced only twice a year. In life, we often talk about balance. Be that wanting the work in a romantic relationship to be 50/50 or talking about work-life balance. Today is the reminder that balance is rarely perfectly equal. It is about the balance across a year, not a day, that is important. At times, you will give more in a relationship; at other times, you will receive more. It is not about what happens in a given day, just over the span of that relationship. Same with work and personal life. Different seasons will require different levels of attention to different parts of your life. That is ok. As long as you take time to make space for all the parts of your life that are important to you. New beginnings are also a theme of today, as we (at least those of us in the northern hemisphere) begin to have longer days and warmer weather. I feel a bit like the cold of this winter had me in hibernation and now I am ready to be out in the world again. I have been asking myself what do I want to begin. Maybe that is a question you can ask yourself as well, or talk about over dinner tonight. It could be a moment for cleaning out the old, like a good spring cleaning. It could be a moment to revisit an old habit. I have been thinking about how I used to start my days with lemon water and have stopped. Feels like time to start that again. It could be a moment to start something completely new. A friend has been pondering a career shift and today left me a message that she is going to set up a meeting with her boss to discuss transitioning out of her job. New beginnings come in so many different forms; what is important is that we keep creating them. |
| My new balance This week, I have been pondering, listening for, and reflecting on moments that align with the concept of balance and new beginnings. Here are some of the moments from my life: Wednesday night, I spoke to graduate students at Hunter College. They are starting their journey as teachers, and I shared with them some action-based behavioral tools for their classrooms. They are all beginning new careers. In my individual sessions, clients open to the idea of new language to use with their kids, new perspectives on their life experiences, and new thought patterns to support their wellness. They are all taking small steps that create new beginnings each day. A friend shared a walking meditation with me, focused on abundance. I started this week. While I did not walk every day, I walked and listened twice this week. Felt like a new habit I am starting, one I intend to continue. The warmer weather will make it easier to continue this new beginning. For myself, I am leaning even more into kindness, as it is deeply needed in the world right now – kindness to strangers, colleagues, friends, and family. I am starting with kindness to myself and rewriting the stories when I make a mistake is a moment to learn about myself. Taking a moment when I feel socially awkward to think about how I could do that differently in the future. Seeing times when I am disappointed as a chance to create a new story. I’m finding that as I build more kindness within myself, it is easier to spread kindness to others. |
| Golden Nuggets: 1. Balance is rarely perfect. Wishing for balance in any area of your life is great. Knowing that balance is measured as a sum total over time, rather than in any given moment/day, is important. 2. New beginnings happen every day. There are times when it can feel easier or more aligned to create a new beginning. Today may be one of those days. Yet new beginnings can happen at any time; you just have to decide to create the opening. 3. Your perspective matters. You get to decide what balance means for your life. You get to decide what new beginnings happen for you. You get to decide what is prioritized. Looking at others can provide inspiration, and that is great. Yet make sure to take the inspiration and make it your own. Create a new beginning that supports your life, happiness, and balance. |
| One step at a time… My steps this week are about attention, more than outward action. I have taken time to think and journal about what balance means to me. I have also taken time to think and journal about what new beginnings I want to create. Now, this coming week, I am going to make lemon water every morning. Well, that’s the plan, and on the days that I don’t, I plan to be curious about what stopped me. I am also pausing throughout my day to ask myself, “Am I being kind to myself?” At the end of each day, I will journal about where I succeeded in building more kindness to myself and others, and ways to do even better tomorrow. Like all new beginnings, I am expecting to hit some bumps along the way. That is always part of growth. It is the decision to keep going that makes all the difference! Your small step? Start thinking about balance in your life. Are there areas where a shift in balance is needed? Are there places where a new definition of balance would serve you? Decide if there are new beginnings you want to create. This can be for yourself or with loved ones. Then share your new beginning with someone. It can make a change feel more real when you share it out loud with another person. One final small step: enjoy the equinox! Go outside, take a deep breath, and notice what today feels like for you. You may feel the magic of it being a perfectly balanced day! |
