Happy New Year! A Little Late but Right On Time

Yes, I am wishing you a Happy New Year on Feb. 2. Not only did I miss the traditional Jan. 1 New Year, but I also missed the Lunar New Year. Even so, this New Year’s wish is taking place right on time for me.

Between holidays, travel, work, and sickness, I wasn’t in a place on Dec. 31 to consider the New Year or what my “resolution” might be. I frankly had no intention of making a resolution. Resolutions seem forced to me, and they’re either quickly forgotten or cause too much stress — and are then quickly forgotten :).

But in January, my meditation teacher invited us to think about our intention for the New Year. She asked us:

What is your deepest intention for the New Year? Kindness? Simplicity? Courage? Compassion? Resolve? Peace? Explore what really matters and to stand by yourself (as you would a dear friend) as you do so.

This resonated with me. She was asking us to be quiet, go inward, and see if a word arose. Just one word — not some grandiose resolution about losing weight, starting a business, or changing careers.

So I sat, quieted my mind, and listened. One word arose: non-striving.

Now, I don’t know a lot about non-striving — what it means or how it’s practiced. But the word deeply resonated with me. Even though I’d bypassed making an “official” resolution, my head was swirling with what I wanted to accomplish in 2020. I wanted to grow this blog. I wanted to start freelance writing again. I wanted to eat healthily, get in shape, lift some weights, maybe join a gym or yoga studio. I wanted to explore meditation and Buddhism more deeply. I thought I could take an art class. Oh, and I wanted to decorate my house and clean out my closet.

Yup, that list went on and on and was, frankly, ridiculous. It was mid-January, and I’d already made myself feel like a failure in meeting my goals, and I was exhausted physically and mentally.

Non-striving seems like the only healthy approach I should follow for 2020. Not only is it encapsulated for me in this Clearing poem, but this blog on Psych Central gives a simple explanation of non-striving: Trying less and being more.

I still intend to accomplish things in 2020. I will still set goals and work toward reaching them. But I will not push against the universe to do so. I will not overburden my heart, my mind, and to-do list with endless tasks that weigh me down instead of lift me up. In my non-striving, I hope to honor my health and my goals instead of sacrificing one in the service of the other.