Hello 2017, Goodbye 2016

| January 1, 2017 |

Are you with me in the disbelief that 2016 is over? Apparently, we were gifted one second more in 2016, but it still seemed to zoom by. I can’t believe all the transitions I’ve experienced in 2016, which I adapted to nearly effortlessly. From leaving the Sunshine State to embracing mountain culture in The Evergreen State, I feel like I’ve developed a deeper sense of connection with myself than ever before, and therefore continue to strengthen relationships with others.

I’ve briefly touched upon how I used to obsessively over-plan and over-think, but you’ll never know how toxic these thoughts were. I plan to continue exploring my previous thought processes as I expand my intuitive connection with myself. I’ve realized I am being pulled silently in the direction of more freedom, love, and travel than I could have ever imagined. I crave the ‘vagabond’ lifestyle, and certainly feel like a domesticated hippie stuck between the professional world and life of liberation and freedom. Somehow, though, I feel these two worlds will continue to entwine and I will maintain a balance between them in this new year.

I envision a 2017 filled with even more magic than 2016. There’s a lot of unknown ahead, and this excites me. In the beginning of 2016, I connected to my core desired feelings in order to create a backdrop for 2017. I’m doing the same for 2017…

2017 Core Desired Feelings

This year, I’ve chosen five words for my core-desired feelings. These particular words have been important to me for a plethora of reasons, and they’ve deeply resonated with me. I feel they capture all I picture in 2017, and allow room for growth. This year will be a grand year of learning and connecting in ways I can’t even imagine!

1. Connected

This word is huge for me. I love feeling connected to myself, the people around me, the present moment, and the common love we all share. By staying connected to this love and positive energy, I can radiate the same positivity, and create overall higher vibrations. It’s especially important we maintain a level of co-dependence and co-creation in 2017 because of recent political, economical, geological, and earthly changes.

“A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.”
– John Lennon –

2. Adventurous

This year, who knows where I will be. As I am now a travel Physical Therapist, I don’t know what the next few months will look like. The unknown ahead excites me, and I look forward to embracing all opportunities to learn and grow in order to better serve myself and others.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
– Mark Twain –

3. Maitri

According to my favorite Tibetan Buddhist, Pema Chödrön, the Sanskrit word maitri is defined by “unconditional friendship with oneself.” I will choose to accept myself for all I am, and all I feel. I will look at myself kindly so I can also look outwardly with a cleaner lens. This year, I hope to work on strengthening my spirit to be able to maintain a level of acceptance and inner peace. I will recognize I am worthy of love and belonging; that we are all worthy of love and belonging. I will embrace love in all ways; to love myself & others without fear.

“Like all explorers, we are drawn to discover what’s out there without knowing yet if we have the courage to face it.”
– Pema Chödrön –

4. Whole-hearted

Thanks to Brené Brown, this is one of my new favorite phrases. Honestly, if I had to choose one word for 2017, this would be it. It’d take me paragraphs to go into depth with this one (hm, future blog post maybe?), but it’s really the idea of being enough and recognizing that we are not perfect. Vulnerability can be ugly and uncomfortable, but it’s necessary for growth. I plan to lean into this discomfort and embrace my true self. According to The Gifts of Imperfection, “Whole-hearted living” encompasses the follow guideposts:

1. Cultivate Authenticity – Let go of what people think about you
2. Cultivate Self-Compassion – Let go of perfectionism
3. Cultivate a Resilient Spirit – Let go of numbing and powerlessness
4. Cultivate Gratitude and Joy – Let go of scarcity
5. Cultivate Intuition and Trusting Faith – Let go of the need for certainty
6. Cultivate Creativity – Let go of comparison
7. Cultivate Play and Rest – Let go of exhaustion as a status symbol and productivity as self-worth
8. Cultivate Calm and Stillness – Let go of anxiety as a lifestyle
9. Cultivate Meaningful Work – Let go of self-doubt and “supposed to”
10. Cultivate Laughter, Song, and Dance – Let go of being cool and “always in control”

“Wholehearted living is about engaging with our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion and connection to wake up in the morning and think, ‘No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough.’ It’s going to bed at night thinking, ‘Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging.”
– Brené Brown –

5. Creative

So much yes! After reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic in 2016, I was reminded how important it is to simply create, while letting go of perfection. In 2017, I exploded into more photography than I ever had previously, yet lacked discipline with writing & getting creative on a (relatively) daily basis. I found myself bursting with inspiration, but lacking commitment to the creative arts. In 2017, I will simply create. I will do this with meraki and put a piece of myself into all of my work. My “creative arts” will also extend to my work as a Doctor of Physical Therapy. I am craving expansion into my field, and have many ideas I will be working on in order to practice the way I want to.

“Do whatever brings you to life, then. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart.”
– Elizabeth Gilbert –

What Now?

Talk to me! What do you see for yourself in 2017? Do you have “core desired feelings” and words to create a backdrop for your year? What do you want to hear from me? How can we grow together?

Namaste, Fellow Dreamers! Cheers to 2017!