A Very Good Year

2008 is already in full force as we are breezing through February.

Did it actually hit 68 degrees today?

I've already seen the first signs of spring: crocus leaves pushing through the ground. I instructed my four year old daughter to note this sign of spring as they are the first flowers to dare burst through the ground and tell us spring is upon us. It has been my sign for spring for many, many years and brings a sense of hope for all the newness, color and life that spring brings with it.

A new year can do the same thing. We are in February, but tomorrow is the Chinese New Year, bringing in the Rat again. I was born in the year of the rat. And though I never did the math when I told myself that my 36th year (yes, in April, it's true) would be a very good year, here it is the year of the rat again. Of course it's going to be a great year!

Call it superstition, astrology or what you want, but really, can't we see every year as a great year? When it starts, we are all hopeful, making resolutions and promises to ourselves and our families. Hopefully, we have picked positive things to focus on, like the one I've stated many times in class of learning all of my students' names.

At the end of last year, I was standing outside of a yoga class with one of my students talking about New Year's Resolutions. She liked that I had a positive one rather than promising to give something up. Of course sometimes there is a need to let things go and make changes, but it's important to notice what we say and how we feel about it. When someone says, "My new year's resolution is to not be such a fat cow," instead of "I'm making healthier food choices and taking more walks," it has an effect on the entire body, mind and soul. Suddenly, this person is not only putting their body on a diet, but their mind lets the body feel it's being denied and the soul is on a diet as well. The way we talk to ourselves or about ourselves to others can bemore harmful than helpful.

If you happened to be in one of my classes where I offered a New Year's meditation, having you focus on something positive that you wish for or want to achieve this year, hopefully you have experienced the liberation and joy in the power of positive thinking. Just like I believe with all of my heart and soul that this year is going to be important and wonderful in my life, I am creating that reality. We can all create that kind of happy buzz throughout the year.

Who said you can only make life resolutions in January? Though I'm keeping my two main resolutions or goals, I've added adendums here and there and completely new goals as well. Life keeps happening, so we have to adapt and make changes everyday. And sometimes, we have to let go of something to let another wonderful thing into our lives. Other times, the universe puts a present right in front of you and you can choose to open it or walk past it. But if you open it, there just might be something completely unexpected, but just right at the perfect time!

My babble has a purpose, I assure you. Though my family and yoga are my two main priorities in life right now, throughout my life I have been writing. I spent many years calling myself a writer and over the past few years let that title fall aside or become an almost secret identity.

Also over the past few years, I have written two children's books, inspired by my daughter. I have dabbled very half-heartedly at submitting them to be published and have let fear of the unknown rule this aspect of my self, my spirit for too long.

This new commitment to positive and being open to the signs and gifts of the universe has drawn me to a children's writers' conference this weekend. I don't know what it means, what I will learn or how it correlates with the rest of my life, but I couldn't ignore the fact that it came up when I was not looking for it at all, and I double-booked both this conference and a class I was supposed to teach (sorry, we'll make it up), yet it feels absolutely right.

Let this be your year too. Spend with me, your family, yourself a year of self discovery, a year of fun, a year of surprises, a year of daring yourself to try new things or reveal your true self to the world. Just like those crocuses, let yourself burst out and say, "Here comes spring! I'm alive! I'm excited to be here. I'm beautiful. And I'm important. Yes, you are.

Happy New Year, happy Chinese New Year, happy Super Tuesday, happy Fat Tuesday, happy Mardi Gras, happy Valentine's Day, happy President's Day... May ALL of your days this year be happy.