As I reflect on the year that is ending, I remember my clients, friends, and family, and the many stories that I was honoured to hear, and that I myself lived in 2022.
The tears and the laughter, the losses and the achievements, the times that people missed each other even though they were in the same room, and the battles that we fought because of that, because we didn’t know how else to make ourselves understood.
Those memories tend to come back to us in the winter holidays, bringing with them ambivalence and mixed feelings, particularly when we are told that this is the season “to be merry and bright”.
The truth is that there are parts inside of us that aren’t merry and bright. The parts that hold our sorrow, our fears, and our disappointments, for example. Those are parts that seem dark at times, and that are just as real as the parts that hold our hope, our wishes, and our love for those who are dear to us.
As you read this, I hope you remember that all your parts are important, and they all have one thing in common: a good intention. All your parts have helped you survive, and they want you to thrive.
Sure, there are parts of ourselves that it's better to let go of, and that we can discard because they are no longer helping us. Yet, I encourage you to take the time to appreciate all your parts and all that you are today.
I hope you remember that you are valuable. That there is no one else just like you on this planet.
May you remember that you have gifts to share, stories to tell, and a unique contribution to make to the world.
“You are a unique manifestation of life”, as Virginia Satir used to say, and that is something to celebrate.
My wish is that you will make space inside of yourself to celebrate your own precious life this holiday season, as well as the lives of those who are close to you.
“On the day when The weight deadens On your shoulders And you stumble, May the clay dance To balance you.
And when your eyes Freeze behind The grey window And the ghost of loss Gets in to you, May a flock of colours, Indigo, red, green, And azure blue, Come to awaken in you A meadow of delight.
When the canvas frays In the currach of thought And a stain of ocean Blackens beneath you, May there come across the waters A path of yellow moonlight To bring you safely home.
May the nourishment of the earth be yours, May the clarity of light be yours, May the fluency of the ocean be yours, May the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow Wind work these words Of love around you, An invisible cloak To mind your life.”
Poem ‘Beannacht’, by John O’Donohue
Beautifully said - thank you!