Are you feelin’ it?! Have you got that clean slate, endless possibilities feeling?!
I do. Or, rather, I did. Well, I do. Oh, it’s so hard to explain. I’m feeling really good. Positive. Balanced. Clear. Focused. Calm. So, the vibes are all good.
Yes, this is the start of something good.
However, I feel a bit different than past New Years. I feel older. Like I’m coming from a deeper, wiser place.
I don’t feel like… “This is gonna be an amazing year!” Instead, I feel like it will be what it is. There will be good times and bad times, beautiful moments and gut-wrenching moments, and everything in between. And that is exactly how it should be. And I will let it unfold.
You see, somehow I have grown up. I adulted much more this past year. But, the result of all of that is the gift of experience. Of perspective and balance. Of finding the calm in the chaos. Of celebrating in the middle of the messiness. Of discovering the power of deep acceptance and the importance staying grounded.
Now, these are all things I’ve known + believed in + worked on for about 8 years. But 2016 pushed me to live my beliefs. It was as if last year was an internship in all I have been evolving into since 2008.
And with all of that, I have learned a great deal about living in the present moment. That, ultimately, it is what it is. And it is up to me to choose and decide how I live. That is the power + the hope that each one of us have.
So, in the beginning of this new year, I feel my soul guiding me to live the most authentic life possible. To me, that means taking all that I have experienced and learned, as I have evolved over the past few years, and really bringing it to life. It means practicing what I preach, embracing all of who I am and bringing my contemplative, bad ass nature to the forefront of my everyday life.
How I intend do that + what that will look like for me is something that I am working on. Something that I will be uncovering and discovering with each passing day. I’m currently creating a mind map/vision board in my journal.. defining authenticity and how I want it to reveal itself in my life. Scribbling, doodling, pondering, actively creating.
But, basically, I don’t feel is rushed. No pressure or need to do or be anything except for what what I feel that my soul guides me to feel or do or be. The focus is not on anything except living authentically and intentionally. Trusting my intuition + the magic of the universe. No rules, no pressure, no rush. But loads of discipline, energy, and groundedness. And much more trust in myself – who I am, how I do things, and consciously aligning the two.
Let me give you an example. Normally, I feel excitement and pressure to create some sort of super inspiring post for the first day of the new year. As you can see, though, since you are reading this post on the 3rd day of the new year, I didn’t not do that. I started writing this post on January 1, but I also let the moments of the day just flow. I spent time with my family. Went outside. Wandered downtown Portland. Watched a movie. Drove to Connecticut. And just soaked it all up.
And I didn’t care at all that I didn’t finish a first day of the year blog post. I knew that I would do it as I did it. That it would be done when it would be done. That was my intention. I trusted it. And I trusted myself.
Now, this is only part of what I mean by living authentically. I’ve got so much more to say about it all in upcoming posts. But, for now, I’ll just leave this as it is.
As this 2017 begins to get rolling, I feel very relaxed and at peace. When I get home to Sweden in a few days, I have tons rituals, ideas, and plans that I am very much looking forward to adding into my everyday life. Practices to incorporate into my way of being + doing… all supporting my focus this year… living authentically.
And that, my friends, is my word of the year: AUTHENTIC.
I’m slowly journaling about it all, and as my thoughts and intentions begin to gel, I will keep reporting back here. I also have a few tips on how to keep your word of the active + alive. So stay tuned!
In the meantime… I am sending you all to a of blessings, light, and love as you embark on your own new journey in 2017. May you be grounded + free, and may you also embrace all that you are, living authentically from your soul.
xoxo. liz.
What a beautiful, fitting word! It suits you perfectly, and the peace and calmness that’s surrounding you breathes through every word you wrote.
Hello, my dear Miriam. I miss you so much. I have been so crazy horrible at keeping up with your (thank god for Instagram!) blog. But, you and your adventures in your new home are in my thoughts and in my heart. I am so excited that you understand the word that I have chosen… I can feel your understanding. Hope all is well with you. Love and light to you.xoxo
I love your description of this place of acceptance you’ve come to – this determination to make the best out of the opportunities life presents you. Your eagerness to move forward despite knowing life won’t be perfect and that you’ll have moments both good and bad is inspiring and refreshing. It’s real. It’s authentic. And yeah, pretty adult. I’m all for being wildly enthusiastic and having (high) hope(s) but too often I feel like those kinds of “everything is going to be amazing” statements/mindsets are unrealistic, both in the sense that life isn’t always great and that the wish for life to always be great is kind of a veiled wish for security, stability, desire to control. It often rings false for me. But reading your post today is just the opposite: it’s brave, realistic, and strong. Like, you’re going to *make* your life great even if everything is tough: you will stay centered and focused, and move through whatever comes. Your year of empowerment truly seems (from what I gather from your blog that is) to have prepared you for this, as you said. This commitment to the real, authentic living you’ll do in 2017 is already courageous and inspiring, Liz. Thank you as always for sharing. Wishing you strength and love on your journey. xoxo
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That you have followed me and my words for so long, Meghan… it means so much to me. That your soul meets my soul in words and photos touches me so deeply. Wishing you much love and light and inspiration, my dear friend. xoxo
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! <3 <3 <3
How amazingly beautiful! I adore the sense of bittersweetness, knowing that — ultimately — it is all infinitely sweet, regardless of how incredibly painful, sad or horrifyingly challenging some moments and situations can be on a "human level". Att bejaka helheten, med allt vad det innebär, förbehållslöst.
I really do relate to what you are expressing here. It's where "the spiritual rubber hits the road", as my teacher often puts it. To me it's about closing the gap between the deepest truth of ones deepest realizations, and the moment-to-moment ongoing everyday living/expression of it. This is where I'm at since a few years back now, and it just keeps getting richer, fuller, deeper, more intimate,…
The essence of my word for 2017 is (to me) the same as yours, and my intentions too 🙂 I chose "unequivocally", which to me symbolizes exactly that: being true/authentic (äkta!), free and grounded. Embodying/living and *being* the innermost truth of my deepest realizations. Staying alert, not allowing any doubts to eclipse that which I know in my heart of hearts to be true, and also not acting from a place of ignorance/doubt/fear/division.
Thanks a million for sharing so courageously & generously, and for all the blessings, light, and love you are sending out in the world — it as all very warmly and gratefully received 🙂
Happy twenty seventeen! 🙂 <3
Hello Magdalena! Thank you so much for your amazing comment… for sharing so many of your thoughts and ponderings. I agree wholeheartedly with you about life becoming richer, deeper, fuller, more intimate (m.m.). I think that unequivocally embodies exactly the same feelings as authentic. That desire to live life from the deepest, truest place no matter what. Thank you so much for reading and following and sharing your own soul. xoxo
Whenever I visit here Liz I am always struck by your authenticity, and the realness of what you share and how you live your life This word is fitting.
My word for the year is Intersections — I haven’t written on it yet — lol – Mexico was too much fun to ponder such a word, but it found me shortly before year end and called to me to step into its mystery.
I’m excited to read more of how authentic unfolds in your life this year. Thanks for being a place of inspiration and grace. I love coming here and always leave feeling at peace.
happy New Year!