Preparation
for 2014
“Cheers
to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.” Oprah
Winfrey
As we close out 2013, we
can begin the process of putting behind us whatever happened this
year that left a bad taste in our mouths. The turning of the year is
a good time to lay to rest old disputes and disagreements and begin
anew with a changed attitude. “It's not that simple,” you say.
And I say, “Yes it is.” We have the inalienable right to change
our minds!
I am not a person who
hangs on Oprah's every word, but I admire the way she has used her
success to further the cause of consciousness in the world. She might
have simply showcased “entertainment” instead of reaching out to
humanity to raise the bar on understanding that they are responsible
for creating the life they want to live. She said, for instance, “The
greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future
merely by changing his attitude.” And she's invited in some of
the great minds of our time to show us how to do exactly that—people
like Gary Zukav, Mark Nepo and Eckhart Tolle.
Oprah has also encouraged
people to focus inward instead of joining in with the voraciously
grasping world. She has brought sanity to our constant striving for
more and more of everything. “Be thankful for what you have;
you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have,
you'll never, ever have enough.” Most of us don't need very
much to be happy and healthy, and that's a fact. We only think we do.
We can change the way we think, and life will open up.
Finally, Oprah doesn't
hold herself out as a paragon of wisdom. She accepts life on its own
terms. She says, “I am a woman in process. I'm just trying like
everybody else. I try to take every conflict, every experience, and
learn from it. Life is never dull.” I like to think that some
of her wisdom comes from growing up in the South, in Mississippi, and
living, as most Southerners do, with a good deal of soul all around.
Perhaps it's her close ties to the church, not of the hell and
brimstone variety, but of the joyful, celebratory, passionate
community, that keeps her grounded in reality. We do not expect the
Lord to save us, but we can save ourselves with hope, joy and
determination.
As we wind down the old
year and prepare to welcome in the new one, think about what you want
to leave behind. Old grudges, old hurts, resentments, all the toxic
material you collected in 2013 can stay behind. Clean your slate, and
usher in 2014 open to life.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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