A new year’s meditation

The older I get, the more I find I’m sleeping through the turn of one year to another without much extra thought.

But it’s been year of change for me in so many ways. I lost my dad in July. I committed to major career shifts and now teach between 12-15 fitness classes a week in addition to working part-time at the University of Waterloo. I’ve made more new friends than I can count and relationships with old friends have taken on new depths in the wake of a rough year for many of us.

So as 2023 draws to a close, I’m looking back on the good and the bad, mistakes, successes, and chances to grow.

I led a meditation on this theme in a restorative class last week and students seemed to like it. I thought you might too, so I recorded it with my online students. Give it a listen if you have a moment to pause and reflect.

A short guided meditation themed around the new year

Meditation script

If you want to lead your own meditation, feel free to use and adapt my script from this one.

We'll be making our way through a short guided meditation exercise reflecting on the themes of ending out one year and making our way into a new year.

As with any meditation exercise, I encourage you to find a position of comfort.

The goal is not necessarily complete stillness, but rather finding a position that feels comfortable and supported so that as we sit breathe and think with intention, the body starts to settle, and we find that restful ease.

You might sit up on a pillow or a blanket. If you prefer to lie down you're welcome to do that as well. Any position that feels comfortable so take your time and get set

Close your eyes and soften your gaze. Notice your seat, notice where those sitz bones make contact with your props or the floor.

Hands can be cup softly in the lap or on the knees. If you're lying down you might turn palms up to the sky, letting the shoulders open or you might cup hands over the chest or belly. Whatever allows you to feel in tune in touch with your body.

At any point if what I'm offering doesn't resonate with you or you're having trouble following the instructions I'm providing know that that's okay. Meditation is a practice just like the physical asana practice of yoga. We build the skill for sustained concentration over time, and not every meditation will resonate with every student.

Let's start with a few collective breaths.

When you're ready deep full breath in through the nose. Exhale. Notice if the shoulders or jaw softens as we breathe out.

Two more times. Deep full breath in and exhale. Let it go

Third breath. Inhale. Big sigh out the mouth

Give yourself a moment to notice how even the simple act of three deep breaths might begin to shift something in your body, allowing you to relax into your posture a little.

As the days begin to get shorter and we move into what, for many, is a busy time of the year, it can be easy to get caught up into to-do lists and obligations. Easy to lose track of what the end of a year can mean for us.

 I applaud you for finding a moment of stillness on your mat today, and I encourage you to follow along with a reflection on the year that we're leaving behind and on the year that's coming.

Picture one thing this year that you're proud of. It could be an accomplishment at work or in your personal life. It could be a new friendship or reaching out to somebody who needed your support. It could be setting a boundary for yourself when that's a challenge for you.

Give yourself a moment as you sit in conscious awareness to cast your mind back over the year and find something that makes you feel good about yourself.

Try not to overthink it. Whatever came to mind first might be coming to mind for a reason. If it's hard to think of something, that's okay. We're so hard on ourselves.

Take that memory you identified allowing it to expand in your mind, picturing how you felt in that moment.

Noticing if even the act of reflecting on this memory has changed anything in your body right now. Maybe you're smiling. Maybe you sat up a little taller. Maybe the stress of this exercise is making your body react a certain way. That's okay. It's a practice.

As we picture this moment of accomplishment, I invite you to repeat the following phrases in your mind.

I am proud of you.

You did something hard.

You did something well.

Work thank

Let's pause and notice this memory for one last moment. Then take a deep full breath in. Exhale. Let it go.

Now I’ll offer something that might be  more challenging. Cast your mind's eye back for something that you are holding on to regret about. A situation you wished you handled differently. A response you gave that maybe wasn't your honest truth.

Resist the urge to get too critical. Accepting whatever comes to mind it could be the smallest thing or something big and heartbreaking.

Picturing this moment in your mind again noticing if this memory has shifted anything in your body. In your breath.

I invite you to repeat the following phrases in your mind.

It's okay.

 I forgive you.

This is how we grow.

This is how we learn.

It's okay.

Take a deep full breath. Exhale.

Let that memory go.

If the body tensed up, can we look for a little softness again? Relaxing through the seat and jaw, letting the shoulders melt down the back.

Lastly, as we approach the dawn of a new year, I think about something that you're excited about for the year to come. A goal you have set for yourself. A challenge that you know you want to take up. A friendship that's just begun. Can be big or small.

Give yourself a moment to let this goal rise to the surface. Notice if the body has changed. Ff the excitement of this prospect makes you sit up little taller or makes the breath come a little quicker.

Picture this goal this objective for yourself in your mind. I invite you to repeat the following phrases.

I'm excited for this opportunity.

I'm lucky to have this chance to grow.

I look forward to whatever comes next.

When you're ready let's take one last collective breath. Full, deep inhale. Big sigh out the mouth.

Has the act of sitting in conscious reflection changed anything in your body or in your mind? Nice and slowly, we'll start to open the eyes.

Inhale hands reaching up and overhead. Exhale hands through heart center.

Thank you for joining me and I hope you have a wonderful rest of this year and an exciting start to next year.