Stepping into a new year is a powerful process filled with hope, possibility and the prospect of positive change. The new year’s desires for 2021 are even more powerful than in most due to the lingering remnants of a challenging year that took us to the very edges of our humanity. Removing ourselves from the stranglehold of 2020 is proving more difficult than anticipated. Perhaps 2021 doesn’t really begin until February this year!

What we set into motion in the present, impacts the future we live into for years to come. I invite you to consider the type of future you would like to step into as we move forward into What’s Next as individuals, families, and a society. So many things are bubbling to the surface, inviting us to seek out deeper clarification and healing.

Wishing you a powerful dive into your own vision and dreams, and a potent activation of your voice into a world that truly needs what you have to offer.

Part One: The Healing Power of Ritual

Keys Creek Lavender Farm Labyrinth — Photo taken by Jeanne Michele

Communal rituals are ceremonious demarcations in time. Weddings. Funerals. Baptisms. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. Quinceañeras. Each of these rituals mark a transition from one state into the next; a letting go of what was in order to create a space for what is to be. Many native traditions have rites of passage for boys to be welcomed into manhood by their tribe. And who among us hasn’t longed for the familiarity of holidays past, particularly during the 2020 holiday season? From a more secular perspective, how many families engage in elaborate ritual to celebrate Super Bowl Sunday with friends and family? These too involve a letting go (of a season) and a demarcation in time. Rituals, whether secular or spiritual, bring us together. They offer an opportunity for communion with one another in celebration of a specific rite of passage.

All new beginnings start with an idea, dream or desire. Your desire is like wet clay to a sculptor. It is a process of addition and subtraction. Without removal of the excess clay, the sculpture would never simply remain a blob of clay. All works of art, including projects, take shape through carving into a bigger form, releasing what doesn’t belong, and fine tuning the detail along the way.

It can be both exciting and terrifying to take a leap of faith into creating something yet to be. This is especially true when activating a big dream or life change. It takes Vision, Courage, Willingness, Trust, and a Plan to dive more deeply into yourSelf — Who You Are and Who You Want to Be.

Self-Realization is a dynamic process seeded in commitment, and the ongoing shaping of your visions and dreams.

Breathing life into your desire is the first step of birthing something new into being. Rituals can quicken this process as they transcend the ordinary functions of the intellect, and activate your deeper wisdom. Rituals offer engagement with that part of your Self that extends beyond your concrete physical senses.

It is important to nurture the seedlings of desire, in upcoming months, in order to keep them alive and growing. Working with someone, or a group of someone’s who hold you accountable to your goals and objectives increases the likelihood of creating and bringing what you want into concrete form.

Native and tribal peoples have been keenly aware of the power of ritual to activate change.

Native peoples tend to live in closer communion with the earth and her cycles. They are more adept at tapping into ways of knowing and experiencing the world outside the realm of the thinking mind. Native rituals honor the passage of time, nature and transitions marked by seasonal shifts such as the winter and summer solstice, full and new moon, and astrological movements.

There is much we are learning from native peoples about the healing power of community and ritual to enact change and deepen connection.

Life is an interconnective web in which nature and all beings are interwoven into one great tapestry. We in the Western World are just beginning to tap into a greater honoring of the earth wisdom that many native peoples have been more keenly aware of. Life is shifting and we who are on the earth at this particular time are being called forward to assist in this process.

As each one of us strips away whatever is keeping us from more fully living into who we are meant to be, we become bridge builders for others to do the same. Each step forward we take builds momentum for others to do the same. The following section offers several rituals to help you release that which has been keeping you stuck in order to clear the way for what you want to step into as you move into the future.

Part Two: The Rituals

Here are 5 creative ways for you to enact rituals to help you access the powerful energy that lies within your deepest connection to yourSelf and connect with that which is beyond human understanding. Each offers a way to more fully activate your dreams and visions.

While these are listed as Steps, you may choose the one(s) that most speak to you, or you may set aside various times to engage with them all. (Step One and Step Two go together.) The more fully you engage, the more deeply you activate the process.

While a new year is a great time to initiate this process, you can call on ritual any time you want to release and step into new ways of seeing and connecting with your higher aspirations and the world.

You may engage in these rituals solo or with friends. If you are not seeing friends in person due to the pandemic, these processes also work well over Zoom. The great thing about Zoom is that you can connect with friends who live in a variety of different places.

Supplies Needed for Engagement with all 5 Steps:

• Journal or Blank Paper
• Two Small Sticks
• Access to Fire (either outdoors or fireplace). If you don’t have a fire place you can CAREFULLY use Epsom Salt and alcohol. 2 parts salt to one part alcohol. Place salt in pie pan. Place pie pan in sand, dirt or someplace it is surrounded by non-flammable substance. You can light it on fire just before you are ready to perform the fire ritual below.
• Plant or flower to plant.
• Rock, crystal, or some type of small pocket figurine.

Step One: Reflect.

Take some time to reflect upon your past year. (While this is a great process to initiate in the new year, you may start the reflection process at any time.)

Take out a piece of paper or a journal and begin answering these questions. (Please make sure you think of at least three answers to each question. If you come up with more than three that is just fine.)

Part One

What are the top three things you learned about yourself?

What are the top three things that surprised you?

What are the top three things you want more of?

What is one daring dream that you have that really lights up your world?

Dream Tending — If you are still searching, and haven’t quite identified your Daring Dream or something that lights up your world, you can engage in Dream Tending. There are two ways to do this. The first is Dream Incubation. Just before bed, spend a few quiet moments deeply breathing. Then offer a prayer request for guidance. Dreams offer powerful insight when we tap into them and ask. Einstein had many revelations in his dreams that helped him solve complex problems. You can also make the same request prior to engaging in meditation. Keep a journal next to you so that you can immediately upon waking record ideas and insights. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t receive an immediate response. The more you practice this, the more insight you may receive, both in the sleeping and waking world.

Part Two

On a separate sheet of paper, write out the following:

• What are the top three things that you do not want to carry into the new year?

• What are three things you would like to forgive yourself or others for?

• What is one thing (attitude or belief) that you really want to let go of that may have been getting in your way for quite a while now?

Step Two: Release.

Fire rituals offer very powerful ways of releasing anything that no longer serves who you want to be as you step into the future. For this ritual, take out the piece of paper that contains the forgiveness and the items you want to release and the stick that you have gathered.

Steps to conduct a fire ritual:

• Build a Fire! 😉 (Or you can use epsom salt and alcohol. (2 to 3 parts salt to 1 part alcohol. Make sure you are lighting in a safe container surrounded by salt or sand.)

Release: Begin this ritual with the items you wrote for Part Two above:

• Take out your stick and the notes you wrote on forgiveness and things you want to let go of. Hold your sticks and offer a prayer, in whatever way your pray. Here’s a suggestion:

Holy Spirit (Universe, God, Divine Wisdom — call on whatever feels comfortable to you) in this moment I willingly surrender that which no longer serves me. I see this fire offering release for anything that has held me bound over the past year and beyond. As the stick burns, so do all attachments I have clung to that have kept me stuck in ways that no longer serve my highest good. I offer gratitude for the upliftment and release this offers to make space for the new: new ways of thinking, listening, speaking and connecting with my deepest truth and unique mission upon the plant. Please guide and nurture me as I step more fully into the most authentic version of myself.

• Blow into your stick before and after you read each of the written items you wish to let go of. If more come up as you are performing your ritual, go ahead and include them.
• Next toss the stick into the fire and allow the flames to burn through anything that may have been holding you back, including any judgements you have made about yourself. As you gaze into the fire, or close your eyes, allow yourself to feel your burdens being dissolved through the flames. Feel yourself getting lighter. If tears come, allow yourself to feel whatever has held you bound. Let yourself grieve, release and empty.
• If two or more people or doing the fire ceremony, each of you becomes sacred witness or the other. One of you holds space for the other’s work through also seeing their burdens lifted. This is a time of silence. Allow your friend to process in whatever way needed, including emotional, without interference. The more they are able to sink down into the process, the more powerful the release. Once the first person signals they are complete, have everyone present sit in sacred silence for a minute or two before moving onto the next person.
• When all are finished with the first process, take a few moments to breathe into the release. If you like you can stand up, shake out your arms and legs a bit before moving onto the second part of the ritual.

Activation: Take out your second stick and the notes you wrote in Part One(the top three things you want more of and at least one daring Vision or Dream you have):

• If in a group, decide who goes first. (You don’t need to know how to achieve this, just allow yourself to lean into it. Focus on the joy you would experience by stepping into it.) Person One engages in the ritual first, while Person Two (or the group) powerfully holds the space in silence for the first person to read their visions and dreams aloud (if they choose to do so). You may hold your hands to your heart or extend them out in front of you, engage with your Higher Self and support of the activation of Person One’s Dream.
• Person One: Blow your desires and wishes into the stick. You may speak them aloud as you do so. Begin with the three you have written and add any more that surface. Allow whatever resides deep within you to surface and guide the process. When it feels like you are complete, close your eyes and hold your stick for a moment or two. Focus on the joy and excitement you will experience bringing these desires into fruition. Then place your stick into the fire and offer a prayer. Here is a suggestion:

I call in the Divine White Light of the Holy Spirit to hear my prayers. I am grateful for the opportunities that will be presented to me this year to step into the most authentic version of myself. I am grateful for all the gifts I have been given during this life time. I look to you for guidance support and healing as I let go of the past and ready my way for the future. I release any lingering limiting beliefs that may have held me back in the past as I powerfully open into new possibility. I place these ideas, wishes and dreams into the Heart of Divine Wisdom. I commit to listening to the Divine Whispers as they show up in people, situations, and synchronicities connecting me into new possibilities. I am willing to surrender and trust that I am Divinely guided for the highest possibility and good of all concerned. Amen.

• Take a moment in silence after the prayer is said or read. If you are doing this with a group, After Person One announces that he / she is complete, Person Two begins their ritual process.

When everyone has completed their ritual, you may offer thanks to one another in whatever ways feel appropriate. Allow yourselves some space in silence before moving on to whatever is next for you in celebrating the move from the old to the new.

Step Three: Reimagine.

Carl Jung believed in the power of Active Imagination to help activate life’s dreams and desires. There are several things you can do to activate your own creative imagination and attract into your world situations, ideas, and ways of life that support your being the best version of yourself. Here are a couple of ideas:

• Create a Vision Board. For this practice shuffle through magazines or online images and words that offer a visual representation of the life you would like to create. Allow yourself to think outside of the box and see what you are drawn to. One you have finished collecting images you can glue them onto a board or in a blank book. Some people separate areas of life such as: Career. Relationship. Spirituality. Growth. Learning. Others put things together on the same page / board. There is no right or wrong way to do this. Your role is to seek and find things that attract you and represent what you desire, and let the creative process flow through you.
• Collage. Collaging is similar, and slightly different than Vision Boarding. The main difference is that when you are collaging, you allow your imagination full reign. You go page through images, selecting whatever attracts you. You are not consciously looking for a specific outcome, just paying attention to the images and words that attract you. When you feel complete you arrange the images on your board or in your book in ways that you find visually appealing. Afterwards you spend some time with your creation. Step back and observe your creation. Notice what stands out for you, then journal about it.
• If you are doing this activity with a friend, it is fun to share your Boards and allow the friend first to observe and offer ideas to you on what stands out for them. It may surprise you to hear what they see before sharing your own thoughts. Then each of you can journal your thoughts and ideas.
• Mind Movies offers a powerful process for creating a digital Vision Board to help activate your desires. Here is a link to their program which offers three complimentary movies to help you get started. The thing I like about this option is that you aren’t limited by images in the magazines you may have on hand, and you can add sound and action to help with the process.

Step Four: Renew

Replant. Refresh. Renew. Do something concrete to symbolize your vision taking form. Dig in the dirt. Plant something, or replant something. Put a plant you currently have into a bigger pot with more dirt and room to grow. If that isn’t possible where you live, buy a plant to symbolize your new growth. As you are planting, replanting, or placing your plant in a place of honor, consider your vision and wishes for your life. See your plant as the joyful representation of your stepping forward in beautiful new ways.

All of this need not be done in one day. You can continue the process over the course of a week or so. Don’t let it go for too long though, as you can lose your momentum.

As you go through your weeks ahead, spend time offering love to your plant and watch it blossom. There have been many studies on the power of positivity to help plants (and dreams) grow. You breathe life and positivity into your dreams as you nurture what you plant.

Step Five: Choose.

One last idea that can powerfully anchor your new ideas into motion is to select a word or phrase that calls to you, representing how you want to show up in the New Year. If something doesn’t come to you right away, give it some time. Set your intention to listen / watch for the word of phrase that you are going to choose for some measure of time. Review your selected word / phrase quarterly to determine if you want to keep it, change it, or add to it. Quarterly reviews help keep your intention alive.

If you are open to powerful astronomical times, Full Moons are great for continuing the release process. New Moons are a great time to help anchor in your intentions. The Summer and Winter Solstices are also powerful times to take stock of where you are, enliven your vision, and adjust as needed.

As you move through your upcoming weeks Pay Attention. Life offers small (and sometimes not so small) synchronicities along the way the to help reinforce and support us on our journey.

Write down things that show up in your world that inspire what you are setting into motion. When you veer off track, don’t beat yourself up. Simply notice. Inquire within as to what happened to pull you off track, then recommit, or readjust your intentions as need.

One More Thing …

Remember that small item from the supply list? Allow something small from nature, or that is meaningful to you to be an anchoring symbol for what you are creating. As you complete the steps above, activate your symbol through holding it in your hands and emotionally connecting with your intentions, visions and new ways of being. Keep this on your desk, altar, in your backpack or purse, to serve as a powerful reminder for your intentions, visions and creations.

The beginning of a new year starts off with remnants of the old to work through. Clearly 2021 has a few bumps to navigate through. Take heart. Shifting into a new paradigm takes time, commitment and dedication. Here are three quotes to help inspire and encourage your forward movement:

“Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.”

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.”
― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“If one advances confidently in the direction of his (her) dreams, and endeavors to live the life that he (she) has imagined, he (she) will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” Henry David Thoreau