Holiday Leftovers

Christmas and New Years are behind us at last. I find myself breathing easier on any number of levels. I have decided on a new direction, and it is one of Mindfulness. I want to be more Mindful in my life, more aware of what I do. The stress of the holidays is such an onslaught for me -- memories, old grievings, nostalgia, the new awareness of being famililess, financial issues and on and on. Only now as I come up for air, I know that I need to be kinder to myself. I will be exploring various ways and doing various things to make that happen.

I will be looking at houses in Massachusetts this weekend, with an eye to an eventual move. Listings are slim in the area I want of houses with the qualities I want. I am not fussy, I just know what I can and cannot spend and what general space and living qualities I want in a house. My realtor tells me that listings shrink this time of year and start getting more robust in the spring. But I will press on, looking at what there is to see. I am trying to not make this added stress as well.

Prayer is feeling very central to my life these days as I try to sort out all sorts of events of the past few years that have landed me at this stage in my life. I sat down and tallied them up -- at least the major events and life-changes and challenges of the past few years and sat back and just shook my head. Lawsy me, it's a wonder I managed.

So now it is time to get more healthy - in every area of my life - physical, emotional, spiritual. It is time to mend the raggedy places. Mindfulness and prayer are the paths for me right now.

So is this a time of New Year's Resolutions? No, it feels more like a New Year's Turning for me -- a re-invention, the healing that this body/mind/soul has needed for a long time.