(The Steampunk Tarot, Moore and Fell))

Evaluation. Stability. Commitment.

I hope this finds you warm, safe, and well, having enjoyed the holiday weekend.

Now that most of the hustle and bustle have passed, this is a good time to look within ourselves; take a serious inventory in preparation for 2018.

Of course, I can already  hear the resounding chorus,

“But Selene, I make resolutions every year but I never manage to keep any of them.”

Take heart, my darlings! This is not your mother’s advice column and I am no one’s  Dear Abby (google it!); we are not talking about old-fashioned New Year’s resolutions – we are talking about up-to-date mindfulness! 

Let’s look to the cards:

This holiday week we are called upon to take a step back to not only evaluate our lives but to appreciate the many blessings; every experience brings potential challenges and learning experiencing – building blocks and paving stones for whatever we are building. What will we do with this information? We will decide how we want to move forward, and then commit to that plan of action. Commitment will be the key.

Commitment is always the key.

This week is an ideal time to take your personal inventory, make decisions about self-improvement, and create a plan to turn your decisions into practice. REMINDER: Size does not matter here! You can make small changes (i.e. my morning coffee will have two shots rather than three), or large changes (i.e. I will attend yoga class each day rather than twice a week), but any change you make should be manageable in your day to day life (affordable according to your current state of resources such as money, time, scheduling).  

Fear of failure is its own reward.

The most important thing to remember is not – I repeat, NOT! – to think negatively. Do not expend any of your precious energy thinking of all the reasons you cannot make the changes. Do not speak your fears of failure out loud – do not give them the power of your voice. Know you are capable of making any change you feel necessary to improve your life; decide you want to do it, and move forward with it. 

SETBACKS ARE NOT FAILURES! GUILT IS FOR SUCKERS!

If you have a setback (too many shots of espresso, missed yoga class), make the immediate decision to get right back to it on the next opportunity. Do not waste any time or energy feeling badly about your setback; it will not help and it will make moving forward more difficult.

Make 2018 your best year yet!!

((All images courtesy Google Images and Facebook.))