If you’ve been feeling like 2022 has been lingering then you’re not wrong. This weekend (Jan 22) marks the Lunar New Year. This is the first New Moon of the year and the beginning of Spring. People often refer to this holiday as Chinese New Year, but it’s not inherently Chinese. It’s the energetic beginning, a beginning that is in tune with the flow of nature.

American culture has lost touch with nature, so I want to invite you to take time this year to regain your connection with the natural flow of the world. One simple way is to go for a walk in nature as much as you can - a park, the beach, or the small gardening center around the corner. Another way is to notice when the New and the Full moons appear. The energy of the moon moves the ocean, so then how does it affect you?

I’ve been gardening for a few years now, but when I started resting more is when I really got in touch with nature. Before, gardening was an action - add fertilizer, water plants, assess for bugs, pot up growing plants, etc. Now gardening is a way for me to sit and be at peace. I will sit and be with my plants and my garden more often, just to admire their growth and patience. Plants are in tune with the sun and the moon, the wind and the rain. They adjust and work through whatever happens, no complaints, only moving forward as they can. When the sun recedes in winter, they slow their growth. In the cold, they might go dormant and wait.

So too am I a living being that needs the sun, moon, wind and rain. This winter I tried to rest more, be inside and sleep as much as I needed. Now that I feel the sun showing up a few minutes more each day, I am feeling more energy, more thought, more growth.

I took the first three weeks of January to think about what I want for myself this year and I’ve reached this conclusion:

I want to understand that rest can bring me more peace, happiness and abundance.

I want to work with intention, instead of working hard. I want to slow down enough to connect with my intuition in the deepest way. And I want to build so much happiness that it spills out around me to my community.

How will I do this?

1. I will continue resting. Resting to rest and not resting for any other purpose.

2. I will acknowledge my value. It is inherent and doesn’t change with how much or how little I produce.

3. I will trust in nature to teach me. As I attune myself to the flow of the universe, then my life will flow too.

Please help me stay accountable by asking me about my rest.

Thank you for reading. Let me know about your plans for 2023. I’d love to hear from you.

Miinkay