Quilting Bee #37

Good morning!! I hope you all had a nice Christmas..ours was wonderful. I thought after all of the amazing feasting last week and well..more this weekend..I would keep it light today. Kona coffee, lots of wonderful teas..herbal too. I have set out lots of fruit this morning, cut and ready to munch on. Washington apples, bananas, fresh pineapple, starfruit, strawberries, blueberries, fresh oranges and Sweetheart tangerines. There is yogurt and some delicious oatmeal to put it on. Real maple syrup if you would like. Not to heavy but healthy. Oh there is some delicious whole wheat bread this morning also..fresh out of the oven..can ya smell it? Mmmmmmmmm.
I have racked a quilt full of contemplation this morning. So glad you are here today..please pull up a chair and join me!

Did you have a busy holiday season? I did..I think from September to now have just been a whirlwind. I said to Jim yesterday that I was finally relaxed and ready for Christmas and it was over. Hmmmmm...that can't be good!! I spent the last several days doing alot of not too much. I stayed off line for the most part, didn't do much cleaning..as frantic cleaning was done last week. I played video games with the kids, I read, I watched movies..I contemplated my year.

I took several hours this weekend and considered 2009. What had been good and not so good. I considered what I wanted for the coming year. I thought about goals. I started my yearly regrouping. I am not one to do resolutions..I guess because..they seem generic to me..loose weight...excercise..blah blah blah...I seldom keep them. But...some years ago I discovered that if I approached them differently..as goals..hopes...wants for the New Year..and I was honest with myself about them...they tended to stick. Well..most of them anyway. So I thought I might share my process with you.

I keep a journal that I work this through in each year. That way I can look back and see throughout the year where I am..if I need to regroup. If at the end of the year my goals have been achieved or do I need to rethink them. I break this brainstorming session in to two parts ....the year we are leaving and the year I am approaching. Each of these is broken in to these six areas:

Spiritual Care - How was I with my spiritual growth this last year..what did I find effective, helpful, blessed? What didn't work, what no longer felt right to me or did not speak to me any longer? Then....what would I like to work on for the following year? Is there an area I would like to explore. Where do I need to grow?

Emotional Care - Looking back at this year..did I keep the boundaries I had set for myself: physical and emotional ones? Did I stay present and honest with myself..if not where and why do I think this happened..what do I need to do this year to strengthen them and why..most importantly with who. Am I keeping a self care regimen for myself..did I remember to take care of me? I was really weak here this year! What do I plan to change and how for the following year..I tend to get very specific here.

Relationships - this one follows closely with the last one. I do a deeply honest assessment of how my relationships have gone over the last year. Not only how many but were they good..if not - why not..what were the factors if they were poor..where is the line drawn between my responsibility in them not going well and theirs. Am I in a toxic relationship that I need to shed? How do I plan to do that in the coming year. I think life gets sooooo busy sometimes, we fail to take the time to really get to the bottom of some of the toxic stuff..trying to ignore it. This is a good time to face the truth and let them go. This can also apply to groups or organizations also.

Family - This is much the same as the last one..but I think as we are dealing with family the dynamics are different. For the most part we deal with family in a different light...within limits. With the family though I tend to really review what has worked with my kiddos..even the big ones. What has failed miserably as a parent and how to do it better the next time. I think we often forget that each child is different. Despite the fact that I have children from 28 down to 6 and have taught children for years..I still muff it on a regular basis and have to regroup.
I also spend a good deal of time considering my relationship with Jim. What is working, what isn't, what could be better..what do I need to change? Am I holding resentment or anger and why? What can I do to change things on my end? This might mean I need to change my behavior or it might mean I need stronger boundaries!

Physical Care & Health- How is my health, weight, exercise, diet..am I getting in for my regular exams..if not why. What did I do this year that I enjoyed..what didn't I enjoy..Yoga, belly dancing, walking..etc.? What fired up my soul to get out and exercise! Have I lost weight..a bit..but would like to drop more? How do I feel physically, mentally..do I need to get my eyes checked..etc.? Honestly..how do I feel? Then set some goals for the next year..what do I want to explore..do more of? Hike, meditate, Reiki..whatever makes the heart sing here!!

Business - What was successful financially this year..what did I try that worked..what do I leave behind for the next fiscal year? Did I spread myself too thin? Spend too much time on one thing..too many things? I serious look at what was affective in continuing to move ahead in our lives..forward away from the abyss not backwards. Sometimes these things are progress that cannot be measured in dollars and cents..sometimes this is exposure of who you are and what you do. It is all relative! This one takes me a bit of time to figure out where to shed and where to go.

When I have worked my way through all of this..I consider one last thing about the previous year..what did the balance look like. Here is the hard part for me..balancing it all well. I will admit, that this year was very out of balance. Sometimes this is the way it is. You start a business..time consuming, a family member is ill..you devote time there of course, you are involved in an organization, you home school, you have a new baby, or a teenager with issues..you have life. Be gentle with yourself here. But...think on how it effected you in all of the above ways. The truth here is...if you are out of wack balance wise and do not take care of you..your body and spirit will do it for you. I have had a whole year of my body and Muse screaming at me about a total lack of balance. I think as I work myself through this process this year..I am beginning to feel like my feet are under me again. That wonderful grounded feeling of finding that balance again.

Do you have a process this time of the year? Would you like to share with us what works for you?

I think I will have a bit of yogurt and blueberries and a slice of fresh bread..mmmmmmmm. I think blueberry tea today. Big, relaxed sigh! Come join me buy the fire won't you? What can I get for you?

Thank you for joining me on this last Quilting Bee of 2009! Wow..2010!! I hope you will be back next year, I do love it when you come and visit me here!! Happy New Year to each and every one of you!! Namaste, Sarah