Post New Year Inspiration -A Chance to Begin Again Everyday

It’s a new day. It’s a new year. It’s a new decade. The sun is shining and everything that happened yesterday, last year, the last decade is behind us. We wake up to the hope of what is before us and leave what is in the past behind. We get all this only once a year as the calendar flips from one year to the next. This is our last chance for for a fresh start for another 365 days. Or is it?

As the Christmas holiday passes, after a month or so of the madness of decorating, shopping, celebrating, and eating everything decadent we are offered, there is a gap of time to reflect before the New Year begins. The joy of the holiday has slipped away and we are left with our over indulgences. We spent too much money. We ate too much food. We might look back at the year and think it didn’t live up to expectations. With the new year close at hand, can we wipe the slate clean and start again? We can indeed. When you wake up on New Year’s day, you might be filled with aspirations of the new you which you plan to be. Put on those shoes and go for that hike. Clear out your frig and throw away all those leftover Christmas goodies. Toss those bad habits in the trash. Who wouldn’t think this is a great idea? The one thing we want to keep in mind is if we had a little too much fun ringing in the New Year to make it happen today, remember tomorrow is a New Day.

“Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” This quote is so powerful that it is often referred to as a Buddha quote. It is actual from Jack Kornfield a great spiritual teacher, Buddhist monk, and one of the first inspirationalist I started following when I began my mediation journey. If we take his quote to heart, we do not have to wait for a new year to begin again nor should we. Most important is to remember that if you did not succeed today do not give up. Tomorrow you can always try again. How much better off would people who struggle with difficult times, depression, anxiety, or bad habits be if they just believed that this too shall pass and tomorrow is a new day, to begin again?

It is a beautiful day. I plan to go for a hike, maybe do some yoga, and clear out my old holiday goody stash. On that later one though, I may not succeed. I do have a thing for the sweets. If I make it through the day without trashing (or eating) all the linger cookies, candies, chocolate popcorn, or other sugary holiday delights though I promise not to kick myself and give up until next year. Everyday is a new opportunity to have a fresh start.