Helen Mirren once said...

 

so true...

 

 

God will always bring beauty out of ashes...

 

a gentle reminder to myself...

~ This year, dear friends, may we all lose weight! The weight of expectations. The weight of self-criticism. The weight of disconnect that fills us with a deeper hunger. The weight of not always loving. The weight of a worn and weary world. Of not always accepting, seeing and inhabiting this precious and sacred body, that we're in.

~ This year, dear friends, may we all exercise! ...our holy will! Our sacred sense of purpose. Our vision and hard-earned wisdom. Our discernment and our shining hearts. In ways that enrich connections, with our bodies, our souls and those we love. And even to the world. ❤

~ This year, ah yes... may we all start the work of quitting... ...that collective Kool-Aid. The negative self-talk. The small-a**ed living. That cacophony of cockatoo-voices that drown out our souls. And old habits: Those used to stop us hearing our pain, our disappointments, and all things much better loved, seen and accepted right down to the very bottom ~ and to find true freedom, through a connection with our deepest souls.

And...

~ This fine new year, (well, here's the best...) May we all be rich! Yes, utterly and completely rich. Wildly and unapologetically. Rich in love. Life. Connection with one another and all that really matters. Filled to the brim and bubbling over; more again and spilling over that. Full of laughter, acceptance, joy, and less of worry. Less of sorrow ~ Rich in renewed experience, of a whole new year! ❤

Happy 2025, dear friends!

~Rachel Alana (R.A Falconer) Midwives of the Soul

January by Donna Ashworth...

For many, January is a hard, cold month… When everyone is setting new goals, laying down righteous ground rules and striving to become a better version of themselves, some of us are fighting to find our feet each day... You see, December is a month of giving, and some of us, come January, are completely and utterly spent. A month of remembering everyone, and remembering absolutely everything. A month of including everyone and of reaching out to each and every person we have ever known. A month of reaching breaking point every day trying to have fun, to be the ultimate hostess, to be the perfect guest. A month of stretching ourselves financially, emotionally and of letting our boundaries be breached by many... in the spirit of the season. And then January hits and bam... before we can even begin the arduous task of clearing away the festivities, we are expected to jump on the ‘new year, new you’ bandwagon and transform ourselves entirely. For some of us this is just too much. January is the darkest and most depressing month of the year and for many sensitive souls, the barrage of ‘advice’ on how we ‘should’ be living, is just too much. So perhaps this is a safe place to say that maybe it’s okay to take a week or two to recover and to just be kind to ourselves before demanding better.
And for those of us who really do fall low in the darkest month of the year. For those of us who have given too much and to whom the future looks bleak - perhaps this is the right place to say - you are absolutely fine the way you are. Just stay. Take some time to breathe. Take some time to not think about anything much at all except breathing in and breathing out. Take some time to build back up, not tear your yourself down. For many, this month is a mountain that looks unclimbable. Be kind, my friends. Always.

Donna Ashworth

This year...

Mend a quarrel.

Seek out a forgotten friend.

Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust.

Write a letter.

Give a soft answer.

Encourage youth.

Manifest your loyalty in word and deed.

Keep a promise.

Forgo a grudge.

Forgive an enemy.

Apologize.

Try to understand.

Examine your demands on others.

Think first of someone else.

Be kind.

Be gentle.

Laugh a little more.

Express your gratitude.

Welcome a stranger.

Gladden the heart of a child.

Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.

Speak your love and then speak it again.

~ Howard W. Hunter