Onward & Upward. Happy New Year.

Many years back, I began a dedicated meditation practice.

I attended classes, read yogic teachings, and sat on my cushion almost daily in silent retreat. It is no exaggeration to say that the benefits for me, at that time in my life, were nothing short of transformative. Interestingly, the first Christmas that passed after developing this new practice fell completely flat. Without the typical timeline of anticipation, stress, excitement, and exhaustion of the festivities, I was left feeling like my new inward journey had broken something; that I’d accidentally ruined my joy for the holidays by distancing my focus from the material world. And then I heard Ram Dass talk about the paradox of meditation - that you might lose the peaks in life, but you also don’t get consumed by the suffering of the valleys. The cultivation of presence shows you that everything belongs and that there is beauty and impermanence in all experiences. Accordingly, the ups and downs of life settle into an infinite ripple of continuous unfolding.

It's been a while since I was so dedictaed to my practice. But I’ve been thinking about this type of steadiness as I reflect on the encounters I’ve had with people this year, and of the sentiment around 2024 in general. Unlike past years, there doesn’t seem to be an overtly negative tone to the year we’ve just had, nor is there an exceedingly optimistic outlook for the year ahead. Collectively, I get the sense that people have been learning to live with the turbulence of our times, no longer paralyzed by the shock of sociopolitical distress or strained by cultural polarity but centered in a boots-on-the-ground commitment to find a way through.

So much of our world is in pain, and we have been grieving for many seasons. But just as the loss of a loved one calls us to appreciate what matters, so too does the ongoing challenge within our global and local communities, climate, governments, and our own hearts call us to cherish the moments of our precious existence. What I’ve been hearing from people is not a wish to deny hardship but a desire to connect to what is good.

Putting aside any significant change or big experience that you may have had in 2024, I invite you to reflect on the moments when you could feel your humanity. Did you stop to soak in the early Spring sun, the moment you knew that winter was behind us? What beautiful new music moved you and awakened a memory from the dusty recesses of your heart? Whose hand did you hold, whose smile did you return, what seeds did you plant, how many trails did you walk, and dogs or cats did you pat? How did it feel to tell someone you love them, perhaps for the first time - or maybe for the last?

We’ve just had 366 days of feeling and being and receiving and achieving and struggling and loving and not loving. How much of it can you recall, not in your mind but it your body? Will you step carefully with me into 2025 and notice these experiences going forward? Moving with awareness may mean that the peaks will get softer, but the valleys are sure to feel less dark.

The world is different, you are different, and so the beauty may feel different, too - yet there it is, in every moment. This is what will nourish us and sustain our efforts to tend to the rest of it. Today, my focus is on the gratitude of my connection to you. Thank you for being a part of my way.

Onward & upward. Happy New Year.
-Alicia