My Yearly Theme and Special Project

Tomorrow is a new moon in Aquarius, and Saturday is the Lunar New Year! 

What are you releasing, and what new things are you beginning?  

Last week was mybirthday. I chose to spend the day in quiet reflection, releasing 2023 and fully stepping into my new year.  I gifted myself the pleasurable experience of getting a massage and facial, and I cooked one of my favorite childhood comfort food dinners. My hubby also brought me some delicious treats. Mostly, though, I continued to tap into the feeling of gratitude for the life I get to live and the people I get to love.  

I also finally picked my yearly theme!  

The theme I chose for 2024 is (drum roll, please…) Elevate. Particularly “Elevate the Status Quo.”  

Elevate means to raise or lift higher. Status quo means the existing state of affairs. I want to raise what I’m currently doing and who I’m currently being. To me, that doesn’t mean I’m focused on radical change- it means consciously choosing to uplift where things are, which could mean a baby step. That feels sustainable, attainable, and even exciting to me.

I’d like to elevate aspects of my home, my physical strength, my messaging, and my relationships, and also be a catalyst for elevating the status quo in other people and organizations. How can we uplift what's already working here?   

Did you pick a yearly theme? What is it, and how’s it going? 

Two weeks before my birthday, I got a powerful idea for a personal year-long project one morning under the shower spray- Isn’t that where all the best ideas come? 

I was turning 49 - one year before a big milestone birthday. The idea that appeared was 50 Letters Before 50. Or maybe it’s 50 Letters for 50 Years. Which do you like better? (seriously-weigh in)  

The idea is that I’ll write 50 letters to people who’ve shaped and impacted my 50 years on the planet. Most of those letters will be sent/mailed, and some will be written anyway, even if they cannot be sent, trusting the message will energetically/spiritually be delivered.  

The idea is that I’d write one letter a week. And since there are 52 weeks in a year, I could write two bonus letters on the first and last weeks to myself. 

When the idea dropped in, I immediately knew it was what I wanted to do. I would deeply reflect on my entire life and every week be awash in gratitude and connection. It felt like a perfect elevated ramp up to turning 50.  

But then I went into a lot of doubt. Why? Because despite what you might think, I struggle with consistency and discipline.  And this would require me to put sustained effort into something for an entire YEAR. That’s a long time! Friends, I can’t even eat the same thing three days in a row. Can I do it, or would I get overwhelmed and freeze?  

Yet, I know there are a lot of compound benefits to being consistent.  For the last few months of 2023, I decided to write to you 1x week instead of whenever I got around to it. This gave me a reason to be thinking and writing and engaging with you regularly. I felt proud of myself for being that consistent and also looked forward to reading and responding to the emails written back to me. 

So, I’m going to keep sending you emails on Thursday, and I’m going to start writing one letter a week. I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going.   

Hit reply and let me know about your yearly theme, which title you like best, or anything new you are starting this year. Have you ever done a year-long personal project? I’d love to hear.  

Happy New Year (again).