2013… may it bring joy, peace, love and many fun/sweet moments like this:
Happy New Year!
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Monthly Archives: December 2012
The Gift of Light
Blessed Winter Solstice! Hail to you, the longest night of the year! In past years I’ve celebrated alone (with the exception of one memorable cold-weather ritual) but not this year. This is the first time Xander gets to stay up all night (or at least try to). So far we’ve gone out for dinner, made decorations for the outdoor tree (bird feeders and popcorn strings, which we’ll put out tomorrow morning), played a few board games, had snack(s) and are now watching Lord of the Rings. I’ve also got a tarot reading planned (for both of us), more snacks, and (if we’re awake enough) some more baking before we greet the sun’s return.
There are many interrelated themes to Winter Solstice: endings and beginnings, for example, and darkness giving way to light. I also feel gratitude for the light that returns, a gift from She-That-Is to the world, and a renewed sense of faith in that which I cannot name, that which is larger than we can comprehend or imagine. It has been a season of endings, but it is now a time for beginnings.May the light shine anew this morning for us all. Blessed Be!
On Endings
Last night about 9, I turned to Xander, “I’m bored.” His reply? “That took a lot longer than I expected.”
Yesterday was my last work day at Calgary Seniors Resource Society. (My contract goes until the end of December but I had some vacation/lieu hours to use up.) There’s a sadness that comes from something ending before you’re ready to let go, and there are a lot of people that I know feel that way about this project. I’m not going to dive into my personal feelings about that here, but instead focus on two questions that came up for me this month.
Do you think you’ve outgrown this position/sector?
The person who asked this isn’t a part of the non-profit world, but he has excellent insight into how people work with one another. The irony here is that I took the position because I’d outgrown the last one (and knew I had), but I hadn’t asked myself if I needed to change sectors as a part of the growing process as well. (This isn’t to say that I don’t respect the sector or those working in it, but more that I need to remember that I’ve done this sector-changing thing before and it helped with the “new” factor for me.)
Do you think [specific action] was worth the risk?
The “risk” wasn’t actually that big of a thing, and it certainly never came up for anyone I was working with. And no, I’m not going to name it, that’s not the point. But what it did for me was show that my perception of social change and risk were very different than this person’s. That’s not a bad thing, and it’s something I need to keep in mind as I’m moving forward (my favourite new phrase, apparently, which means I hope this is the last time I use it) in the new year.
Rosetta Thurman was absolutely bang-on when she posted today, “For people who enjoy helping others, it can be a challenge to stay on track with YOUR purpose vs. being pulled in different directions according to other people’s needs.” I’m taking a well-needed break for the next couple of weeks (which hopefully will lead to more blogging, not less!) and will be moving into 2013 with a renewed sense of purpose, with truth, with intention and with a trust that all manner of things will be well. Blessed Be!