I admit it: I’ve never tried to have a New Year’s resolution, so I’m not in a very good position to say they don’t work. I’ve simply never been much attracted to them. If I am not already able to do something easily (enough), then applying renewed willpower has never seemed likely to work any better than it has until that point, and the truth? I’m kind of allergic to disappointing myself. 😉
And yet, there’s always been something attractive about this time of the year. I have made it a practice for several years now to slow down, reflect, and see what might be revealed in a way I might not have noticed until now. I feel the presence of an invitation, and I feel inclined to find an authentic response.
As we all know, the timing of the New Year is fundamentally arbitrary. For the Chinese and many other Asians, the new year happens late January or early February. For the Jews, the new year is sometime in September or early October. But the cultural context has a deep influence, as we learn from any systemic point of view: the fact that most everybody is celebrating a new year at the same time takes us into that ritual space where we are, indeed, noting the end of one year, and the beginning of a new one.
In cultural anthropolgy, this is called “liminal space”: a threshold, an in-between-ness, that is very holy, sometimes scary, and always filled with possibility, new energy, and the likelihood of counter-intuitive reversals and topsy-turvy-ness. And, it’s not so much because of something “out there” (the arrangement of the stars and planets) but because as a community we are stepping into the space together in a ritual way, and that does something very powerful. (For more info on liminality, check out this very useful article.)
Having said all that, our shared community rituals are hugely impoverished. Watching the ball drop on New Year’s Eve, drunken parties, etc., all have their useful ritual elements, but because of our radical freedom and independence (mostly very good things indeed), we don’t have much in the way of rich, symbolic ways to enter liminal space together, find wisdom, and step into something new supported by the community.
Another aspect of this season is gratitude. It is typical to spend some time during this liminal period to look back, and while we might need to grieve losses, betrayals, crises, or disappointments, most of us also have some concrete blessings to give thanks for. Having made it through another year; the beauty we participated in; having enough (or perhaps an abundance); being touched, in some way, by other people; having work, or offering service to others, that was meaningful.
In addition to gratitude generally, this season has me thinking more and more about generosity, too. I like to think of myself as at least an average-ish generous person, but more and more, as my practice has grown, I’ve felt a longing to explicitly include generosity in my business.
So, these things come together: New Year’s reflection, stepping into liminal space with others, grieving losses, gratitude for blessings, and generosity. I invite you, wherever you are, to find your way to do this good, spiritual work.
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