By Stephanie Linehan
In 2025, give yourself more grace. Compliment strangers. Acknowledge others for being brave. Notice the little things you appreciate about yourself, your community & your loved ones. Ask for help, and accept it. Take your time. Be present. Make decisions that future you would be proud of. Pause & reflect more. Dream big. Stretch your comfort zone. Say how you feel. Play more. Find gratitude in the mundane. @canineconnectioncoaching
With all of the new year’s resolution quotes, affirmations, and poems floating around there, this one stood out to me the most. I love words so much. I treated this excerpt like I would a black-out poem. I captured only what struck me within this time-being of my life.
Grace It’s not a giving in. It’s not an oh-well. It’s not a hands-up, surrender-kind-of-thing. It’s often a deep breath. A giving someone - or something - space. For a better point-of-view. For more reflection. More thinking. More time. More understanding. More compassion. For others or for yourself.
Brave It’s in both the little and the big things. But sometimes the small moments are actually the most brave and it proves you can handle the big. They’re just the stepping stones. One at a time.
Notice It was a theme within my classroom, with my students and among each other. I tried to model and encourage noticing. Notice what you need in a moment of learning and living. And notice others around you - how they feel, act, and maybe even perhaps sometimes … react. It opens our eyes to pay attention to our place in this world. Are we adding to the value or taking away? And two wonderful yoga instructors recently started using the phrase ‘take up as much space as you can’ in their opening reflection for class. Notice how much space you’re taking up and more times than not … take up more. ;)
Be Be present. This has served me so much more in recent months. And it’s happening more automatically. Life felt rushed and frazzled. I put pressure on myself to finish laundry by a certain day of the week in order for the bathrooms to be cleaned by a certain day of the week in order for the beds to be stripped a certain day of the week and so on. Everything relied on something else to be finished. It always felt like a very unsuccessful juggling act. Life is so unpredictable. was doomed from the get-go. It wasn’t easy though. It definitely wasn’t automatic. It definitely took time and a boat-load of intention, prayer, and patience to unwind all that. I’ve also learned how to just be within the chaos. Let the sink overflow and the laundry pile up in order to fully enjoy and engage in an episode of ‘Shrinking’ on Apple TV or an episode of ‘Wheel of Fortune’ with Johnnie or get outside for a hike or a walk regardless of time of day or weather. Plus, I have teenagers. Our time together isn’t necessarily meals, bedtimes, or even car rides. It’s in the downtime, the unexpected time, the couch-sitting time, and the late night time. Believe me, I know how good it feels to stay organized and check things off a to-do list but I strive and advise to not grip so tightly. You might miss the good stuff. ;)
Stretch Your comfort zone. Oh, I’ve so done that and I’m good now, LOL. This place I’m at right now is called ‘floating.’ I’m living, contributing, enjoying, and loving. I greatly tried to model lifelong learning to my students and my own children. I’m all for stretching your mind to keep it agile, sharp, eager, curious, and open. However, the stretching I am most into lately is yoga. A community event as a whole class with great leadership from our faithful instructors but an individual ‘sport’ that allows me to pause time & breathe and appreciate & continue to nourish my mind, body, and soul.
Play More. I’m a kid again in the woods. ’m looking at and admiring everything and anything. I’m noticing beaver paths to and from the river, wildflowers, wind & river currents, the distinction in seasons changing, etc. I’m following the path and sometimes taking ‘the road less traveled’ (cue in Robert Frost). ’m eager and paying attention to sights and sounds. My senses are heightened and I’m so fortunate, so blessed, so grateful, and so, so happy.
Mundane I have so much more happiness within the simplicity of life now. I strive to not over-analyze or over-plan or over-compare my life with others. I am so grateful and so greatly enjoy the simple and the ordinary. For our graduate certificate in servant leadership through Viterbo University, Missy and I took a course called ‘Rituals and Celebrations.’ Much of our class readings, reflections, and discussions centered
on the beauty of what we do day in and day out and the importance of honoring the simplest to the greatest events of our life.
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