Love this moment.

Me & my handsome boys, July 2011.

When I reflect back on 2011, it has been a pretty amazing year.  My life is richly blessed with the stuff that matters. 

It’s been a year of growth, loss and new beginnings.  I’ve recognized that one of life’s greatest gifts is the ability to feel.  To genuinely feel the range of emotions in life and appreciate them for what they are.  I think it comes from being fully engaged in life and being ok with feeling the bad, the uncomfortable, the pain, along with the good, joyful moments in life.  I recognize that the moments that have been the most challenging… the ones that I would have avoided given the chance, have been moments of great growth.  So, I am thankful, yes, thankful for the challenges, the pain, and the injuries.  All these things have made me more real.  I’m changed, and change is good.  If you’re not growing & changing, you’re stuck.  I still have a lot to learn, so I welcome life’s challenges because this year is going to be a BIG year of growth.

Yoga.  I can’t say enough about how cool this practice is.  And by the way, it’s a practice, not a religion.  It’s a way of living, an amazing physical discipline that will make you feel, really feel incredible.   It’s a spiritual journey that is what you make it.  I thank God each day for the breath of life, the breath that carries and sustains me.  Yoga gets you out of your head and into the flow of life, one breath at a time.  Some of my greatest gifts this year were born of yoga.  I’m a little more patient, a little less judgmental, and a little more grounded.  All beautiful gifts to me and those around me.  Yogis are good people.  This year I’ve made some of the most amazing friends through my studio.  They are both friends and teachers, because they all teach me things on a regular basis like how to give, share, laugh at yourself, make an impact, open your mind and open your heart.  Yogis rule.

In a couple short weeks I’ll begin training to teach yoga.  This is both terrifying and thrilling at the same time.  Yoga has made such a positive impact on my life, and I want to share the love.  Something tells me I will be like a rock thrown into a tumbler.  Shaken up, rolled over and over, painful at times, but in the end, a smooth & shiny teacher will emerge.  I’m ready now.  Bring on the training!

Probably the most significant event of this past year was being present through my mom’s last week of life.  I can’t say it was a best or worst moment.  I cried.  I felt both sadness and joy.  It was beautiful.  Life is beautiful.  There is something sacred about being with someone during their last days.  It’s just you and God.  You can feel the closeness and the grace of God.  I felt it in a big way with my mom, and I feel it every week when I’m visiting at Faith Hospice.  I so love my time spent at Faith Hospice.  It is such a gift each and every time.  A “wow” gift.  Kind of like Steve Jobs’ last words… “Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.” 

In 2012 I want less stuff and more stuff that matters.  I like nice things as much as the next person, but we Americans have way too much stuff.  I will live with less and sponsor a child in need.  Check out Katie’s story: http://www.amazima.org/katiesstory.html

Better yet, read her book, Kisses from Katie, and prepare to be wowed over one amazing young woman and the impact she is making in Uganda.

What I want more of this year is something I want for me and for everyone - more patience, more love, and more presence. 

Be kind to yourself and others, be quick to forgive, replace fear and judgment with love, and live in the moment.  Those little moments are the significant ones, so don’t rush, breathe deeply, live fully.  Love this moment.  It’s all we have.