Happy Self-Love Sunday!
Here we are at the end of another calendar year.
Do you have a yearly ritual that helps you end one year and begin a new one?
At the end of each year, I allow myself a fresh start.
Every year on December 31st, I write a letter to myself about how the year made me feel. I highlight the issues that haunted me for the past 365 days and I make note of the good things I am grateful for.
Some years the letter is only a paragraph long.
Some years the letter fills a whole page.
But every year, without fail, I cry.
Writing each letter feels like shedding all of the weight I had been carrying.
Sometimes I don’t even know how strongly I feel until I begin to write about the things I may have been suppressing.
My yearly ritual occurs before the first of January and has more to do with the year that is ending than the new year that is approaching.
Writing this letter allows me to focus on the things that went well and those that didn’t.
I allow myself the opportunity to take responsibility for the mistakes I made and release myself from the guilt of the things I can no longer control.
I have to shed the weight of the ending year because I cannot allow myself to carry it any longer.
Whatever you do to end every year and begin a new one, I admonish you, be honest with yourself. Don’t set unrealistic expectations but also, don’t sell yourself short.
If you make goals for yourself, be specific.
Write plans.
Affirm yourself.
Constantly remind yourself of the goal.
I don’t make a list of resolutions at the beginning of the year, but I see the value in doing so.
The letter is a necessary part of my growth because I allow myself the opportunity to forgive myself, accept my current position and consciously decide to move forward.
You don’t have to write a letter or a list of resolutions, but this new year is an opportunity for you to break the habits that have been binding you, release yourself from self-inflicted pain and forgive those who may not deserve your forgiveness.
You deserve every good thing that the new year may bring. Don’t limit yourself by refusing to let go of old baggage, promise yourself a fresh start.
The Introvert's Escape Maneuver 