FIERCE OPTIMISM

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  

January is always a time of tremendous relief for me -- the holidays over and a clean slate ahead.  And this year we had the super-auspicious coincidence that January 1st fell on a Monday!  A dieter's good omen!  (I'll start it on Monday...I'll start it on the 1st of the month...)

To kick off the January 1st "New Start", Hub and I went to a New Year's Eve gathering with friends where we facilitated a sharing circle to talk about what we are letting go of and what intentions we are setting for 2018.  We also ate, drank, had an 'oldies' sing-along, and shot off fireworks.  Got home at 1 a.m. and stayed up talking with Hub until 2.  I do believe it's been years since I was up, on purpose, that late!  So 2018 was already shaping up to be different.

This year I am letting go of the ever-vying for my attention twins: depression and anxiety (who have been mostly sidelined for over a year, but they are sneaky bastards), procrastination, heaviness of body and spirit, and anger/rage at the political situation.  I wrote all that down and tossed the paper into the fire pit.  Good riddance!

My intentions are:
To be a badass Resistance Fighter and to act from a place of compassion and fierce optimism
To prioritize health and vitality
To practice gratitude with daily reflection
To prioritize writing projects
To be more vocal and activist about ageism

I wrote all those down, attached them to a lantern and set it free into the full-mooned, cold, clear, sky carrying my intentions on the gentle midnight breeze.

And, so far, so good....

I've gone a bit quiet on the political front, as I reflect and become more discerning on where my energy needs to go -- into thoughtful action and not constant, frantic reaction to the chaotic craziness that emanates from the current president's mind and mouth.  It continues to be outrageous and terrifying but I'm not so triggered every time.  I find a quiet assurance emerging that this is a temporary situation.  2018 is a Mid-Term year.  That's where my energy is going to go; to work to throw the enabling, party-before-country, sucking-at-the-corporate-teat, self-serving Republicans out on their butts.  (OK, maybe I'm still a little pissed.)

My Gratitude Journal holds the mundane and sublime record of daily thanks for the abundance of joy and challenge in my life and what I can learn from that.

I've pretty much eschewed mindless sugar consumption, kicked up my treadmill walks, and have lost 1.5 pounds.

I'm forging ahead with a writing project that I plan to turn into a book for my family.

And I'm toying with the idea of either starting a new blog about growing older/ageism or making discussions of ageism a larger part of this blog.  So, stay tuned on that.

I feel on the cusp of changes for Hub and me this year too...sort of undefined yet, but a subtle shifting of attention, priorities; living with more intention and making deeper connections to each other and those we love.  Also, we will be doing a lot of traveling this year -- a completely new focus for me, who typically spouts the "I hate to travel" mantra.  I'm actually excited about our trips...but I'm not packing yet, so there's still time for the night-before-leaving panic and regret about "making these stupid plans and can't we just stay home?!?"  So, stay tuned on that too.

All in all, today finds me optimistic....fiercely optimistic....about 2018.  And that's a brand new place for me to be.  Go figure.

At least, that's the view from here...©

REVIEWING VACATION INTENTIONS

Well, the annual Kaua'i vacation for 2017 is winding down.  One of my intentions was to find sun and warmth.  I did.  And grateful every single day for it.  I read yesterday that the Puget Sound area set a new record for rain over the past 6 months,  just over 44 inches, which is more than our average annually.  So, it's not all been in my head; we've had a lot of rain at home.  During our stay here a few days were overcast; one cool and rainy all day.  It's not called the "Garden Isle" for nothing.  Sometimes it rains...and gives us the lush green garden of floral delights because of it.

Another intention was to find balance and peace about the political situation.  I made progress.  I am feeling more able to take action and then let myself rest.  I am still appalled; still angry; still sad.  But reality is reality.

I'm following Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin on Facebook.  She does an almost daily FB Live video, deconstructing the news of the day; explaining behind-the-scenes machinations; keeping her followers focused and motivated.  Yesterday she talked about "kicking the shit out of Option B", based on a quote from Sheryl Sandberg's book, "Option B --  Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, Finding Joy", written after her husband died.   Option A (Hillary being president) is not available to us, so we need to kick the shit out of Option B -- resist this Administration's policies that are destructive and hold them accountable, and vision what we want for the future.

I'm also finding great solace in watching Rachel Maddow every night, because she's brilliant and fair and funny.  But I find it's too much to watch all the talking heads and read every news/opinion piece and watch every satire comedy show...saturation point far exceeded.  Balance and discernment.  Just say no.

I've stepped up my meditation practice too, since this trip coincided with another of the Oprah/Deepak 21 Day Meditation series.  This one is on "hope" and I have to believe this was very intentional.  They talk about finding hope in challenging times.  I guess that could be any time for any number of people, but it's definitely now for many of us too.

I wanted to feel healthy and strong and I've had mixed results there.  I've eaten healthy thanks to Hub, who has cheerfully grilled fresh fish and veggies for us every night. Hawaii's bounty of papaya, mango, and apple bananas with yogurt has nourished us each morning and complementary coffee and tea all day has kept us hydrated.  We did do a slight ice cream binge.  My vices are so few these days, I've decided I don't need to scold myself for that.

I have slacked off on my yoga practice, but we have done qigong together (wrote about that on my yoga blog, if you want to check it out:   http://circlingthemat.blogspot.com/2017/04/pushing-back-waves.html  Hub has gone for a 3.5 mile walk every morning.  I went once.  I still totally suck at discipling myself to do aerobic exercise, except in my Friday Fitness class, which is really fun.  So back to that next week!

I wanted to write and yes, the muse has been with me.  It is such a luxury to set aside all the to-do lists, commitments, appointments, schedules and just move through the day at a lazy pace, with nothing to do and nowhere to go.  When I've felt moved to write, I did.  When I wanted to sit quietly, I did.  When I wanted to read, I did.  All of this feeds my Writing Genie and she's been with me, prompting and smiling.

So, homeward bound we are and I'm ready to be in my familiar places, seeing my friends, hugging my family, planting my garden.  Hanging on to the peace and tranquility of vacation time is always the challenge.  But I have to believe a time out of the routine works some magic even when we find ourselves caught up again in the abundance of "real life".

At least, that's the view from here...©