What is it about traditional New Year’s resolutions that make me cringe? I’ve always had a resistance to creating resolutions, i.e. setting goals, committing to new routines, forcing change. The first thought that comes to mind is that I’m lazy. Or that I have no will power. Another thought is that I hate to be confined by rules – mine or anyone else’s.  But maybe it’s something else. Maybe, when I think about traditional resolutions, it feels bad because the underlying message is that something is wrong with me. I have missed the mark or I am intrinsically flawed. Only with a strict regime of some kind can I hope to be fixed. It’s a sort of “beating myself up” that is culturally accepted…even encouraged. If I don’t commit to some socially imperative goal, then I’m not in the game and life will pass me by.

But if I look at it another way, I discover something new. I know from experience that my emotions are the way my inner being (spirit) communicates with me. My spirit adores every ounce of who I am and would never see me lacking in any way. When I feel negative emotion, I am thinking a thought about myself that my spirit does not agree with. So it makes sense that when I consider New Year’s resolutions that hint at self disapproval, my emotions flare letting me know that I am off center. That twisted feeling in my stomach is telling me that my current self-incriminating perspective is not the truth. My only hope of returning to a lighter, more peaceful state is to change my mind about who I think I am. I can’t continue to focus on my perceived limitations and expect to find inner peace. My spirit knows I am a brilliant creative being on a journey of self-discovery and there are no wrong roads. Every thought and action serves to move me forward on this evolutionary path. The journey is about love –  and loving myself is where the journey begins.

So how do I start the New Year on a positive note? This year I’m going to be gentler with myself. I am going to focus on a way of being that cooperates with my spirit’s intentions – that allows life to surprise and delight me.

This year I resolve to live my passion. I don’t know what that means – what challenges or opportunities will show up for me.  But I am open to explore a more vibrant and heart-centered daily experience. I want to feel the energy of Source pulsing through me. I want to see the world through my spirit’s eyes. And I want to offer to the world what is mine to give. This moment is filled with infinite possibilities for me. I feel it calling. I’m excited about what’s ahead. This is a great time to be here. Game on!