Thinking About the New Year

A friend recently forwarded me a series of questions she was reflecting on at the end of 2021, as she faced the beginning of the new year.  

I’ll list them here, in case anyone would like to reflect on them as well. 

1. What blessings / good things were given to me this past year?
2. Is there something I feel proud of or grateful to have learned or helped make happen?
3. Do these offer any clues as to how I’d like to use my energy, time or money in the coming year?
4. What people have been a blessing to me, enriching my life in a big way and helping me?
5. What books, podcasts or encounters have stayed with me and why?
6. What sorrows have I known?
7. What is helping me cradle these sorrows with exceeding tenderness?
8. What habits and practices have helped sustain me in 2021?
9. Are there any habits or practices I’d like to foster in 2022?
10. What insights have I gained in the school of life?
11. Is there a prayer or tender yearning in my heart - for myself or for others, as we journey into the new year?
12. This is a question I’m holding: .....
13. I saw love and beauty here: .....
14. As I step into 2022, this is something I want to remember and hold close to my heart: ...