(i.e. Are you allowing support when it would serve you?)

Hello beautiful beings! It’s been awhile since I’ve connected in this way, it has been quite a year so far!

I know that for many of us, 2018 was a difficult year to navigate. We were provided with opportunities to face some of our biggest challenges and fears. And so 2019 is the year to not only face them, but to make the changes necessary so avoid creating what no longer serves. This process can feel unsettling, or often destructive. But as we release old ways of thinking and being, we create space to allow a more expansive present and future.

So what can you do to move forward with more grace?

*Identify your best sources of support, and lean in.
Who are the cheerleaders in your life? Who consistently encourages you to stretch beyond your comfort zone? Who offers to help you, support you, or simply listen, when you feel that you could really use it?
Schedule a coffee, an evening out, a weekend away, or regular chats with these...

(i.e. Are you showing yourself the same respect you’d like within your relationships with others?)

As we approach the end of the year, we often look back to see what has worked, and what has not. And I find that any time something is not working, there is an opportunity to delve within, to understand what is ‘not working’ within. Our outer world reflects our inner, providing an opportunity to check in with what truly aligns in the present moment.

Over the past few weeks, issues around Honour and Respect have been discussed in sessions and classes. So many of us feel dissatisfied with our relationships, feeling that they are lacking in love, connection, consideration.
But the reality is that another cannot provide something that you yourself refuse to allow, or offer yourself.

How often do you diminish yourself through the choices you make?
How frequently do you put another before you, creating your own suffering?
Do you respect your time? Your energy? Your freedom? Your body? Your mind...

What wisdom are you bringing to 2018?
The end of December is one of my favorite times of the year. I love it because work winds down for the holidays, and I set aside time to reflect, to gain perspective. It is a powerful few weeks.
As I look back, I remember what I’ve gained over the year. And this year has been a time of growth and of letting go. Here’s what I’ve got so far:

At the beginning of the year, I focused on my core desired feelings (via Danielle LaPorte, check her out). These represent how I want to feel as much as possible, and there are some subtle shifts each year. My words for 2017 were:
Purposeful, Luminous, Bold, Dynamic, Aware, Fascinated, Aligned, Awakened, Spirited, Devoted
Next year, I’ll be asking for more dynamism and luminosity, fine-tuning my experience.

Theme of the Year: What would Prince do?
The answer: Whatever the hell he wants to do. It is always liberating to do what you truly desire, what really aligns.
Be more like Prince. Live your gifts and your purpose...

How much ‘patience’ do you employ before you hit your breaking point?

I think that most of us mistakingly allow others to take advantage of us under the guise of patience. Over the years I have repeatedly asked or begged for patience, wanting to feel calm and compassionate in the presence of abuse. I asked for patience with people who lie to themselves and the world, when I was delayed because of another’s choices, and when a friend began to push my boundaries, and then to shove against them.
I believed that I needed to be more patient in these situations, but patience was not the answer. The answer was courage. I needed courage to choose a response that would influence the dynamics that had become increasingly unbalanced.

I have listened to teachers preach the power of patience. “Be patient, what you have been asking for will come to you”. I believe that this works to the degree in which we can allow, and then it is up to us to meet the Universe halfway. Patience is not passive, but ...