Happy 2022, y’all! It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I’ve taken almost a month off from blogging and it felt so strange. But, it also felt so very good. I’m not sure that I’ve ever taken such a long break through the holidays. But, because of making space to have some real time off from writing, planning, and blogging, I feel like I am coming back now refreshed + inspired. So, I thought I’d let my first post of 2022 fall on the first full moon of the year. That feels just perfect for the vibes that I am bringing to 2022.
Let me begin by sharing that I will be sharing photos + stories from the past few month in a few days. So, if you’re interested in a little photo journal, that’s coming soon. But, this post is something else all together. I want to return to this space with all of the energy that is swirling around right now. I want to begin by dropping into the vibes + mood of the season – and of how I plan to live this year.
A whole new year has arrived. And I’m not sure how you are experiencing it so far. But, I dare say that there is a bit of anxiety, worry, and exhaustion somewhere inside of you. The pandemic will not let up and the world still seems unstable. Political differences are rampant in many countries, and for some reason, we cannot seem to find a way to listen to each other; but, instead, continue to choose sides and continue to define ourselves as us + them.
With a new year, though, we almost always tend to find a way to scrounge up a tiny sliver of hope that things will be better, that “this will be our year”, that things will fall into place or dreams will come true, that happiness will find us or whatever else we hope for.
And, it is good to hope. It is good to set goals + make resolutions and plans. It is good to believe in the magic of a new year. However, many of us will start the year off with a bang, only to feel like we’ve been let down or failed once again by the end of January or February. We want so badly for things to change, for things to be better, and for happiness to be right around the corner. And we get all caught up in the blank slate that lays before us and just jump into the new year – hoping that this is the year that we make it, find it, create it, do it. Whatever “it” is.
But, I think that rushing into a new calendar year with a blank slate mindset is dangerous. It causes us to just forget the past, to pretend that 2021 didn’t happen, or to to just throw out all that we didn’t like about the past. It keeps us thinking that there are bad years, bad times, and bad people. And then there are good years, good times, and good people. But, that’s just a very black + white way of thinking. It holds us hostage to our circumstances + makes us dependent on things outside of us to make us happy or at peace, instead of allowing us to find our own power + strength to create our own lives no matter where we are or what happens.
Now, it’s no secret if you’ve been around this blog for a while, that I live my life in rhythm with the seasons. I live a slow life that drops into the cycles of nature, going with the flow, accepting the changes, and finding a sense of grounded-ness in learning to be present wherever I am + whatever I am feeling + whatever is going on. Of course I am not perfect at all of this. But, it is the way I intend to live. And I have leaned into this cyclical, rhythmic way of living with the seasons and listening to my body, my soul, and my intuition for a few years now… so it is almost impossible for me to live any other way. I don’t want to live any other way. Because this is the way of my soul. And it is the most natural way to live, since we are as magical + rhythmic + cyclical as nature herself. We are, in fact, nature. Wild, free, in tune with, inspired by and held by the earth + the heavens.
With that said, living in rhythm with nature inspires me to slow down + soak up the energy of each season. This wild life that I seek to live calls me to allow my life to naturally align with the seasons. When I do, I find that I feel that I receive nourishment, healing, and a sense of wholeness. It is a spiritual way of moving through life, flowing + unfolding + becoming who I am meant to be.
And, right now, the vibes of winter are what inspire + call to me. It may be January and most of western society may be jumping into the new year full speed ahead, ready to finally achieve whatever is needed to feel successful, feeling tired of the dark + cold, and longing for the spring + sunshine. The energy of others in January is often to rush onward. But, loves. It is still winter.
The quietness of the winter season begs us to enter the new year slowly. The wisdom of the cold, dark season invites us to stay in our little caves of hibernation just a little bit longer. During the quiet of winter, we discover our own wisdom and hear our own voice. We wait and care for our roots, which lie deep beneath the earth. We let our roots slowly draw up the nourishment and medicine we will need come spring. But, now is time to practice listening, creating, intuiting. What’s really important right now is to rest, restore, listen, and slowly intuit the rhythms, plans, and dreams that we want to manifest in the coming year.
This is a much needed part of the cycle of life. It is the long, restful pause where our roots grow deep down into the earth, giving us a strong foundation. It is the season for practicing rituals, starting habits, and setting intentions.
The first full moon of the year brings us the first night of bright moonlight of the year. Under this moon, it is the perfect time to begin to wonder what we want to bring to the new year. To begin to take our reflections from 2021 and allow our intuition to guide us toward the vibes that we want to bring into 2022.
I think all of this time off, throughout the holidays, I was able to really reflect + feel. I thought a lot about how I have lived and how I want to deepen and continue to embody my rhythmic, ritualistic, slow life even more. Now, I didn’t do any writing about this, not even in my journal. I just reflected on it as my mind wandered and daydreamed. As thoughts or words or ideas came to me, I simply jotted them down in a note titled “Twenty Twenty Two” on my phone.
After I returned home this past weekend, I found myself spending some time looking through those words – identifying the mood and the vibes that they give me. And, from that, over the past 2 days, I created some sort of list of ways that I can continue to bring those vibes into my life this year.
So, I thought I’d share with you the chart/list that I made of the vibes I’m calling in + the ways I will embody those vibes.
For 2022 the vibes, the life, the energy that I am creating is one that continues to follow the rhythms of life. I reject the idea that life is linear. That the only way we are going is up… seeking that highest peak that seems to never come. Instead, when I look at nature, I see her cycles. From the changing of the seasons, to the phases of the moon, to the revolutions of the earth around the sun, to the tides, to menstruation, to work + rest, to life + death, to sunrise + sunset. The rhythms are not just circles that repeat again + again. Life is, instead, a spiral cycle of change, growth, transformation, and becoming. For all of nature – including us.
So, for 2022, I am aligning my life with this spiral, this cycle, this rhythm, this wild + natural + ever-evolving + becoming way of living. It is the way for me to become even more me, to find grounded peace, to flow + unfold + pour out my life as an offering of beauty + inspiration. It is the way of healing + balance + spirituality – so that I might live from my soul and be who I am meant to be for the world.
| THE VIBE: RHYTHMIC | THE WAY: Living in tune with the seasons + my body |
| Contemplative | Reading, learning, studying |
| Monastic | Living mindfully by daily routines + rituals |
| Cyclical | Following nature + moon phases |
| Evolutionary | Practicing mindfulness through reflecting + journaling |
| Creative | Blogging + photography, Dancing |
| Inspiring | Planning monthly travel, art, and culture dates |
| Present | Meditation + deep breathing, Laughter |
| Grounded | Connecting with nature, Movement |
| Slow | Breathing, listening, mono-tasking (opposite of multi-tasking) |
| Intentional | Aligning with my soul, following my intuition |
| Anchored | Meditation + breathing, Practicing yoga |
| Ancient/Ancestral | Reading, Wisdom-seeking, Celebrating festivals/rituals |
| Simple | Creating a seasonal home: decorating + cooking + hosting |
| Spiritual | Everything. All of it. |
I’ll share much more with you about my routines, rhythms, and rituals as the month continues to unfold. I am still allowing myself time to understand and feel my way into my intentions + plans for this year.
In the meantime, Happy 2022 to you! I wish you deep blessings of peace + hope as we enter this new year together. May you create life-inspiring days that are just what your soul needs. And, remember, you create your life.
Stay quiet. Breathe deep. Listen to the silence of the earth. Be mindful of the slow, perfect return of the light. We are still in the wise medicine of winter, but spring is coming. And this is our time to live.
xoxo. liz.
Happy new year to you too Liz. I loved the way you outlined the vibe you want to embody and the way you can achieve it. I’m reflecting on last year and what I want to bring forward this year. I do this through a practice called ‘word of the year’ It’s an intention that acts as my guide and touchstone and it reminds me of not just what I want to do but who I want to be. I still haven’t decided on the word but you have inspired me to get cozy and contemplate by the light of the full moon. Thank you.
Oh I wish you a cozy time contemplating your word of the year! I did a word of the year ritual for years. But, this year, nothing was really coming to me, so I just accepted all of the words and turned it into a vibe. ☺️ Blessed full moon to you!