Happy New Year-ish Times

Happy New Year-ish Times

Posted by Beth Cyr on

Besides the calendar new year of Jan 1, a lot of other cultures and traditions celebrate a new year during this season. 

What does a New Year mean to you?

My business definitely follows the calendar new year. Tax season ends/tax season begins. Not the most exciting. 

I would say my body actually feels like the astrological new year makes more sense, which doesn't happen until the Spring Equinox - around March 21 (which happens to be my partner's birthday, so like, double new year for him!). I feel like in winter I'm in a hibernation phase. There's not really much of that "new year, new me" phase. I want to be left alone with a book next to a fire with a cup of tea and hot soup. Biologically my body says no thank you to a burst of physical energy to DO THINGS. 

I do enjoy the reflection time, the looking back and learning from past wins or challenges. I enjoy introspection any time of the year, but it is heightened around new year time and the winter. It isn't a heavy time of creation, though writing (and reflecting and pondering) can definitely be seen as a type of creation. 

My friend Sara Taylor recommended a site called 750 words. It's a pretty simple way of having a writing practice that is tracked. It is inspired by Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way morning pages. I don't do it in the morning and it's on the computer, but I have absolutely typed about my typing the way I used to write about my handwriting, so that is pretty funny. In a short period of time my typing has actually gotten a lot better - a funny side effect. For a long time my brain seemed to move faster than my hands could, either in handwriting or typing. Lots of mess and mistakes but I never go back and read so it doesn't matter. I seem to have learned to slow the brain down a bit though and writing can come in a more fluid way than previously. 

I've had plans for writing a few different books over the years, much more seriously the past few years but the pressure to sit down and writing something specific and good has made it feel like 'it's not the right time'. I'm pretty tuned in to timing and can sense in to "Am I being avoidant or scared? or is it truly not the right time?" The more specific I can get with the questions, the better my internal compass works. 

Is it the right time for writing THE BOOK? No. Is it time to just write? Yes! It feels like a super lovely time of year to just write. About whatever - nothing or important things. No editing, no spellcheck, just thoughts into words. 

What are your thoughts on new year times? Does it feel like the energy of starting new things for you? Do you come alive in the winter and get motivated? Or do you feel the societal pressure to DO while what you really want to do is just BE?

There's a lot of struggle happening in the world right now. Maybe the most I've felt in my entire life. The hardest time in my personal life happened a few years ago and born out of that was the collection Beauty in the Upside Down. When my world had been turned upside down and completely dismantled, I continued to look for the beauty. For me, there is always beauty in nature. From an expansive stunning sunset over the sea to a tiny mushroom growing out of a pinecone, I try to anchor in to the natural world. It kept me going when little else seemed possible. I also very much find beauty in the darkness - knowing there are bright sparks to be seen that can only be found when it is the dark times. 

It has taken years of work on the collection and I've sold most of the originals (there are still some available - and I keep adding more), but I've finally created a large selection of prints from this body of work. I'll be releasing the new prints in the next few days. Here's a sneak peek at several of the pieces together. 

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