Change for The New Year

Happy New Year!

This is the time of year of personal reflection. Many of us question what really matters and consider making changes in our lives. Over the holidays I came across this quote and found its wisdom to be quite striking.

“At each stage of learning we must give up something, even if it is a way of life that we have always known.”

-by Ginivee, an Australian aboriginal woman

Just yesterday I was describing to a patient that in order for real change to occur, we have to make choices that lie outside our current paradigm. We have to be willing to step into the unknown where nothing can be predicted and where we are not guided or influenced by past experience. This willingness to let go of familiarity opens the door for real change to occur. New thoughts, new inspirations, and new actions can then arise when we are not clouded by the comfort of what we have always known.

Real change requires faith, trusting that life will support us in taking a step forward, and then the next. If we wait for the perfect plan and a guarantee of the end result, we will stay stuck looking at the staircase before us with trepidation. However, being willing to move into unchartered territory to embark on a new journey will carve a path for endless possibilities. Take a risk. Go for it!

 

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