If anyone else is like me, you are still processing this new world we call 2015. Lately it seems that everything that I knew to be firm, secure and true, has been turned on its head. On the world stage, Paris was recently on lockdown while Cuba is now the hot new Caribbean island getaway. My new business website was not done by developers in Silicon Valley or India, but via a young talented team in Nicaragua. On a personal note, I just completed the 21 Day Sugar Detox in which my morning oatmeal and agave combo was out; but bacon, butter and red meat were standard dietary fare.
We're dabbling in essential oils for health reasons and peppermint oil, not Tylenol, recently treated my son's fever and the lemon and lavender that I diffused in my baby daughter's humidifier cleared up her cough almost immediately (which is no easy feat due to her tracheamalacia). And it's a constant source of amusement to my budding astronomer children that I still refer to Pluto as a planet (am I the only one that recalls the 9 planet mnemonic, usually ending in 'pancakes' or 'pizza')?
I've always considered myself a lifelong learner being naturally curious about people, places and philosophies but I also felt that after several degrees and a decade of professional work in a variety of industries that I had a firm foundation of sorts that gave me confidence to embark on new roles, be it professionally with a new client, or personally with parenting. Perhaps it's a newfound dose of humility but I've decided to enter 2015 with my palms up, recognizing that I still have much to learn. And that while we, collectively, presume that we know so much of the natural world, it seems that we still have only scratched the superficial surface.
So where does that leave us? How do we navigate this proverbial 'brave, new world'? I'm by nature a goal setter and December traditionally has me itching to set goals for the next year. This year I found myself drawing blanks, sketching out some ideas and rough goals but nothing as tangible as usual. I have loved the freedom to embrace Feb. 1 as the new Jan. 1 as heralded in Lara Casey's Goal Setting Series.
This allowed me to use most of the month of January, the calm port in the holiday storm, to ruminate over my passions, callings and interests and align them vocationally and personally. Forging ahead into this new world of 2015 and beyond, I believe, will require less action steps and more 'outlines;' the ability to flex and pivot while also keeping steady a core foundation of guiding principles. I have a feeling this year that most of my learning will come from a process of unlearning; from unleashing and releasing certain habits and mindsets. And by keeping palms up and expectant, I receive more than I could ever imagine.