Good Intentions

This new year brings a wry smile to my face.

How many times have I sat down in a determined 'I can do it this year- you bet' kind of attitude, writing out my new year's resolutions? Probably forty, give or take a few years when I didn't care or just didn't get around to it until the shininess of the new year had worn off.

Like so many others I always have this initial burst of enthusiasm and optimisim thinking I can create a new and improved me in some way or other. A fresh start, a fresh me. Until that is, the day I do or don't do what I wrote on that piece of paper and then it all goes up in smoke until the next year.

So much in the past has hinged on all or nothing for me.  I'm sure it has a lot to do with my perfectionistic personality, but what a shame, what a waste! So many unfulfilled opportunities missed because of my silly, unreachable standards.

So this year before sitting down pen to paper I paused and gave the whole intention thing another look.

What if I just took one step each day in the direction that could help me live more fully? And if I get derailed- what if I just got back on that track and tried again?

And no matter how long or short I can keep an intention, isn't the time that I actually succeed worth celebrating rather than writing off? Every journey starts with one step- and each step counts. So whatever the outcome, those good intentions took thought and reflection to create, and initiative and courage to execute. There is value in beginning, even if the outcome is not what I hoped it could be.

And maybe by accepting with humility that I will make mistakes, that I won't always keep up and that I am susceptible to human frailty I'll be able to find more self compassion when I fall short of my expectations. By realigning myself and trying again, maybe there will be a renewed sense of optimism and enthusiasm found simply in the act of trying. Just maybe.

So this year, rather than carving my failure or success in stone, I throw caution to the wind and set my sail on good intentions without a destination, opening to wherever that wind shall lead me. It's bound to be an interesting journey..

Happy New Year everyone. May all your good intentions lead you to a life fully lived.

Namaste. _/l\_