Life By Design: Time of Transition

Happy New Year!

I’m quite excited.  I’ve been moved to create a new category of blog posts for 2015:  Life by Design.

 Embracing a life that is true to your heart and soul’s callings can be challenging in a world of expectations, labels, and ingrained social norms.

It’s important to remember, therefore, that you are the gift – there is no one else in this world like you and no other life like yours.  Your life is yours to create in a way that is true to You with your own Sources of Guidance.

As my own life is the only one I am truly qualified to write about, I will use some of the steps on my journey as potential inspiration. As always, use what serves you and leave the rest.

Time of Transitions:

Christmas for me has traditionally been a time for family. I’ve just returned from 10 days in Ottawa with my parents, siblings, niece and nephew.  New Year’s, however, has long been a time of reflection and ritual that has helped me mark the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one.  I personally find rituals a powerful way to connect to my soul and to my sources of Guidance.  Some even help ground me in the here and now to get a more accurate picture of my current reality.  Here’s what I did this year.

1. Space Clearing: cleaning, organizing, and smudging
   Having practiced certain feng shui principles in my physical space for years, I made sure I didn’t start a new year with dirty laundry or full garbage bins.  That was more about symbolism.  I also decluttered, organized and cleaned my closets, desk, and studio.  It feels good to start a chapter with a fresh page.  Then, last night, I walked through the entire house with my beeswax candle and burning sacred palo santo wood to cleanse the space from any stagnant energies.  As I waved the smoke in every nook and cranny, I sang:”Love, peace, joy, health, wealth, and happiness – love, peace, joy, health, wealth and freedom. Freedom, oh freedom…” Are you inspired to perform any rituals in your home to mark the beginning of this new chapter?
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2. Vision Board:
   I’ve described how to create intuitive vision boards in a previous post.  On New Year’s Day, I went to a friend’s house to share this activity with two others.  As always, it was a revealing and moving experience.The question that I wrote at the back was “What is in my Highest Good for 2015?”. Although I expected it to be a lot more about my art and the business of art, I discovered that this year, I am meant to find the right balance between cocooning in my home and studio and filling my eyes with the wonders of the world – be it in my own backyard or elsewhere. Interestingly – I included “2015 Ireland” on there, but I’m not getting a clear feeling yet if that means actually going to Ireland, being involved in an Irish-based project, meeting a man with an Irish background, or something else. Vision boards give us signs, but interpreting those signs sometimes become clearer as life happens.  The relationship theme – one of lasting love – seems to have come up a few times on this year’s board – I welcome that. Basically, my entire board is about creating a life that is driven by design – a life that is a perfect fit for who and what I am – in health, relationships, career, grand gestures, and small wonders.  It’s not only about getting active in my business (through exhibitions, prints, and not putting all my eggs in the same basket as one photo revealed), but also about the art of contemplation – on my own at home and in nature.  Indeed, I’m being guided to dive deep into the mystic waters of my soul to connect to ancient wisdom as well as entering the holy now through sweet surrender. It also reminded me of the many layers of my life that have shaped my spirituality – all of which I am grateful for. Who knows what that will lead to, but you’re sure to hear about it on this blog.  2015 will also be a year of play – connecting to the passions of my inner child – be it art, dogs, imagination, making snow angels, being by the water, etc.  It looks like another great year ahead – I’m loving the mystery of how it will all unfold.  The saying in the bottom left corner intrigues me “Sometimes the road less traveled isn’t a road at all”…
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3. Financial Summary:
   Although last August’s computer theft has made it more challenging for me to summarize all of my monthly financial reports (learned in “Your Money or Your Life”), I was able to look at exactly where I stand as I begin 2015 as compared to a year ago. It’s surprisingly encouraging – which is why I do it.  I’m glad to report that I’m definitely not a “starving artist”! (As an aside, my housemate Orinda and I cooked ourselves a lovely feast for New Year’s Eve” – we definitely don’t starve in this house!)  I now only have $2,493.92 less in the bank than I did last year at this time (including my year-end business hst I need to remit to the government). This is great considering I spent half of the year as a student and world traveler and the other half re-establishing my art practice.  There’s something very empowering about knowing where my money is coming from and where it is going – and evaluating on a monthly and yearly basis whether that energy flow is in line with my values.  I’m glad to report that I’m still very much on track – living a debt-free life aligned with my values and heart callings. Also, as for every January 1st, I was thrilled to add the maximum $5,500 into my tax-free savings account.  This brought my every-day expenses account even more below my personal comfort zone, but I trust that’s temporary. It gives me a new goal to work towards.  The bottom line is abundance in the true meaning of the word.
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4. Gratitude:
   Soon after waking on January 1st, I asked my Spirit Calling Cards for a message for 2015 and this is what I got:
   Perfect! I followed that up with 3 pages of automatic writing, all about what I was grateful for.  Gratitude makes great fertilizer! It put me in a wonderful frame of mind as I continued with my day… and my year.

How are you feeling inspired to mark the beginning of your 2015 chapter?  Feel free to comment below as you may inspire others.

May you have a year filled with Unconditional Love, Peace, Joy, Health, Wealth, Happiness, Freedom and the Inspiration to Live by Design – Your Own!