december - a month of lights, snow and feasts; time to make amends and tie loose ends; finish off what you started and hope your wishes come true.
“It’s December, already!!” is an emotionally packed statement each year all of us hear around us at the start of the month! For some it is a time to celebrate the good times they had through the year. For others, it brings with it a not-so-gentle reminder of personal milestones or resolutions missed.
Whatever might be the case, it is a time for reflection for most – to reflect upon the year gone by and what they need to keep in mind for the year that follows. Reflecting on one’s life is a therapeutic experience for many. Understanding your actions, reactions and apprehensions helps to enhance self-awareness and connect with one’s soul. As a famous quote puts it “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” (Søren Kierkegaard)
Then there are people like me who reflect all through the twelve months and find themselves stumped when asked to write their reflections for the year J Jokes apart, what I want to share with you through this post is something I shared all across my SHEROES’ posts starting August this year. My reflections are about things that I learnt and experiences that made me evolve as a human being.
2014 for me was a lot about new beginnings and new learnings. Getting married and moving to a different city, of course contributed immensely to this outcome. If I had to list down my top three accomplishments for this year, they would be –
1) Learning to manage a house independently and yes that includes cooking
2) Learning how to drive in a city with not so good roads and terrible driving sense
3) Reviving my commitment to writing
It is surprising that somehow the most mundane or taken-for-granted things in life have been the ones that challenged me the most and kept me excited. All of the above three have been personal milestones that I was enthusiastic about sharing it with my SHEROES community. Needless to say the community itself has been instrumental in this happiness
Reflections for me are also about what tomorrow brings. Partially it comes from my anxiety for the future. But it is also about what my aspirations and hopes are for the coming year. Though this thought process is seldom structured, yet in an effort to make a difference to some of you, I share with you the questions that I ask myself for end of year reflection.
1) What were some of the things you did this year to improve your life?
2) What were the steps you took to achieve your life goals?
3) Did you touch someone’s life this year in any way?
4) Did you feel good about doing something this year?
5) Did you take out time for your personal interests?
6) What are the things you wish to continue and discontinue in your life next year?
7) What is that one habit/thing you wish to give up on next year?
Personally, I believe a healthy mind is the epicenter of all success. So go ahead and use these questions to ‘reflect’ on your 2014. Do share with me what your reflections are and in what unique ways do you arrive at those. Eager to learn how to ‘reflect’ better.
Here’s wishing you all best wishes for the coming year.