12 Wishes

Did the 12 wishes a little late this year.  But that's just fine with me.

Here are last year's:

Good wishes, all.  Just re-entered a good gratitude practice, where I send myself off to sleep reviewing the day and feeling grateful for every bit of it, even the slow or rotten parts.  So that's made a comeback.  Definitely made a lot of mistakes, though they only seem wonderful in hindsight.  I failed some at spending on experiences, not things, as you know.  But I continue that good fight.

I definitely wasn't like Milo most of the time, though I do think I did more relaxing and playing this year than in years past, and that was a great good thing.  I definitely had lots of wonderful and unexpected moments and surprises.  I did a much better job of putting family first (though maybe I should double-check that with them!).

My spiritual practices were not as strong in the second half of the year, though I'm headlong thrown back in those at the moment, and boy are my eyes getting opened to some things I maybe didn't want to know about myself, let me tell you.  But there's also been a lot of sweet, soft grace, too.

Lots of wonderful laughter this year.  Many hallowed moments.  Lots of fearful times, but some times when I practiced letting go, too.  Need to work on building that muscle, for sure.  And plenty of saying yes, though unfortunately I said yes to a few things I don't love, and am dealing with some of that fallout right this very day, sigh, sigh.

And here are this year's:

1.  Review each day with gratitude.
2.  Be deliberate when making choices.
3.  Celebrate your life.
4.  Open up--you are not the only one who struggles.
5.  Keep running (physically, not metaphorically!).
6.  Make your own rules.
7.  Make peace with your feelings.
8.  Meditate.
9.  Stay in this moment more.
10.  Be kind first.
11.  Focus on richness, not riches.
12.  Simplify.

Cliches, all, but good things to practice and aim for, I think.  I'll have a hard time with that kind one, I can tell you that, since I have a pretty bad sniper habit in place, and for some reason it's always hard for me to maintain a long-term meditation practice.  It's all just a reminder of how to live and be, anyway, right?  There's no waking up into enlightenment tomorrow morning.  Unless there is.  But probably it will just be the same old effort to live a life in line with what feels good and with what I value.