Happy New Year Everyone! I am so excited that Bloganuary is back. This is the 3rd year that I will be participating. I look forward to the prompts and making new friends.
So, what are my biggest challenges? I would say my top 3 are as follows (in no particular order):
1. Too much stuff
I just wrote about this yesterday, actually. My word for the year is “Less”. You can read more about why having too much stuff physically, digitally, and mentally is a challenge here. The good news is that I made a little dent today with my wardrobe. Whoop whoop!
2. Creating systems
I tend to be a bit helter-skelter with most things. Last year, I set myself a goal of becoming more disciplined. While I have definitely improved, I have still not found a system to help me work, write, and run my home smoothly. That is my dream, and I will succeed. I just need to put more effort into it.
3. Overcoming procrastination
I have written about this many times but have yet to find a solution. I have tried implementing the 2-minute rule, the 5-minute rule and every other rule I have read about, but I guess I have not been very disciplined about it.
If I overcome these three challenges, I figure that 80% of my other challenges would disappear. So we persevere so that we may continue to rise.
Image: Canva
I look forward to reading about your challenges. All the best in overcoming them in 2024!
That’s my word for the year. I have been looking around me for the past few weeks, and all I see is stuff. My wardrobes and cupboards are overflowing. My inboxes are overflowing. My folders are overflowing. There is just too much “overflowing” going on around me.
Image: Canva
That is not the only reason I want to have less of everything. I want to have less because I want to focus on the things and people in my life that will bring me more. More enrichment, more growth, more enjoyment, more experiences, more fulfilment, more fun and more focus…I guess you get the picture.
I am very grateful that I have been blessed with the means to accumulate all that, but I have definitely lost my way. I have accumulated largely for the sake of accumulating things and because I can sometimes, though, my bank balance takes some strain.
The issue with accumulating stuff, responsibilities and projects is that you can quickly lose sight of the things that are important to you. There are areas of my life that run me because of this lack of focus which is not on. It is time to take back the areas I can control, like my finances and my home, for example. I have spent so much time, money and effort into my education that I have let the maintenance of my home slip. I have allowed so many little things that need fixing to accumulate. I don’t know about you, but I also find it quite stressful when things don’t work correctly, so fixing it all will lead to less stress.
Clearing the clutter also adds energy to a space, or at least that is how it makes me feel. The same is true for clearing the mental and digital clutter. I feel rejuvenated and more alive when I step into a cleared space. I must admit that if I have done too good a job clearing a room, I feel a little lost in the space.
There are two areas that I will find the most difficult to clear: my bookcases and my clothes. I will have to come to terms with the fact that there are quite a few of each that I have to release for someone else’s enjoyment. I may never get to read/wear them, and that’s okay.
This is just one of my bookcases that is screaming for help 😱
I have tried physically decluttering before, but the clutter has somehow found its way back. I have come to the conclusion that it’s because I didn’t have a “why” that resonated with me each time I did it. I just did it because, at that point, I was tired of the clutter and wanted a clear space. This time, I know why I want to do this, and I am clear on the benefits for me and my son. I am clear on how to restructure the space to achieve my desired benefits.
Transformation takes time. This has been my other downfall previously. I had lacked patience with the process. I end up accepting a lower standard just to see a difference. So, in 2024, there will also be less rushing and lots more patience.
So, I am looking forward to a clearer and more focused year. Less for More in 2024!
Thank you for walking with me through 2023! May your 2024 be blessed.
Do you have a word or phrase for the year to come?
That line is Day 12’s centring thought in Deepak Chopra’s “Manifesting Grace through Gratitude” meditation programme. The programme is free and has been running throughout December. Each time I repeat that line, it brings me such peace.
I have been contemplating it, and it has made me think of how revitalising closed doors can be. I didn’t expect it to lead me to revisit closed doors, but it did. Perhaps it’s because I read about forgiveness in Marianne Williamson’s “A Return to Love” this morning. In it, she says that the Course says: To forgive is merely to remember only the loving thoughts you gave in the past and those that were given to you. All the rest must be forgotten.” It makes sense if you remember that forgiveness is a quest to return to a state of inner peace. This passage has been rolling around in my subconscious the whole day, and then this evening, I came across Deepak’s line.
According to the Christian religion, Grace is the unmerited favour of God. God would not give us Grace if He hadn’t already seen past all our perceived wrongs. He only shows love and understanding. So, to know that I live surrounded by God’s love every second of every day, no matter what I do and how many mistakes I make in life, makes me feel whole and complete. What more can I possibly ask for. And if I have such complete love, then so does everyone else, so who I am, to hold grudges against people and cause myself unnecessary stress, anger and drama. Peace only comes through seeing past people’s mistakes.
OK, Michelle, what does this have to do with closed doors? Well, while contemplating the thought, I realised that I would be in the space that I am today, mentally and spiritually, if some doors had not been closed to me. When some doors closed, I initially focused on the closed door. It hurt. As time went on, I focused on my spiritual growth. I realised that God was giving me space to learn to love myself, to see myself as the whole and fantastic human being that I am, and to find peace and thrive. Now that I understand who I am, it is much easier to let go of the anger and disappointment I might feel towards someone who caused a door to close on me, closed the door themselves, or I had to close it too, and thank them instead. This goes for me as well. If God can love me as I am, with all my faults, who am I to judge myself. Besides, how would I have learned anything if I hadn’t made any mistakes?
So here I am…filled with and surrounded by love and Grace, which gives me a sense of peace. What has your experience of grace and forgiveness being?
Hope that made sense to you. Thanks for popping by. Be blessed.
Grounded African 