Before the year ends, how about taking a moment to reflect on all the joyful moments you had throughout the year? A few days ago, I was talking to a friend, who said that he was ready for the year to end. There were several worrisome things happening throughout the year, and he was hoping the new year would be different. When I asked about a few serious concerns from the previous year, he mentioned that all is well, and acknowledged that there were some blessings this year. I don’t think my friend is alone in focusing on the things that were hard, and when adding them up, it becomes even more painful.
Throughout the year, I thought about what brings me joy, as things got tough for different reasons: health, life, work, stress, loud inner critic, etc., and I wanted to add joy to my heart and soul. I reminded myself of what one of my teachers Robert Baker (RIP), used to say: energy follows attention. If we are giving attention to what’s not working, there will be more energy going that way, and it will likely grow.