Happy 2016, everybody!
I am writing to you from my kitchen table. Unlike previous years I find it hard to find time to sit down and write. Some things are going really well for me but for the first time in my life I occasionally feel stressed because I have a lot on my plate. A mindfulness based stress reduction trainer who feels stressed, an interesting paradox right there. Something to work on in the new year.
2015 was a good year for me. I lead 5 different 100 Day Warrior groups and felt many moments of bliss, gratitude, relief and joy. This project around strength, wisdom and compassion for self, others and planet is growing, which makes me feel both humbled and proud. I post the group photo of the first Warrior Retreat because it was the highlight of my year. This beautiful group of people reflects what I try to accomplish.
Every year my first post of the year contains this particular exercise that I am about to do, let me explain how it works: I take a deep breath and start writing down the dreams and intentions that flow from my heart for 5 minutes, without thinking, without rehearsing and without editing afterwards. Afterwards I often peak at last years post and see if there were dreams that came true and dreams that stayed unfulfilled.
Let me connect with my breath for a minute and we can get started:
I want to feel tenderness often
I want to feel open all the time
I want to give my heart away
I want to love
I want to be loved
I want to feel free
I want to laugh often and cry when I need to
I want to be understood
I want to make meaning
I want to have pizza with Mystery Girl and melt when I look into her eyes
I want to build a powerful movement
I want to keep facilitating life-changing experiences
I want to feel save
I want others to feel save
I want to fall in love
I want to contribute to health and wellbeing of others
I want to be surrounded by smart people with warm hearts and make a contribution to a more humane and sustainable world together.
I want to be forgiving
I want to be kind
I want to be physically fit and strong
I want the Warrior tribe to keep growing and find its own momentum
I want the Warrior THNK tank to become a success
I would love an amazing business partner
I would love an amazing woman by my side
I need friends (and honest and constructive feedback)
I need support
I need hugs and cuddles
I need loyalty
I need encouragement
I need my spiritual practice
I need to take care of my body, mind and spirit
I need courage
I need a vacation this year
I shall further continue on my path
I shall stay true to my heart and purpose, even when it gets scary
I shall be honest
I shall contribute to the growth of others
I shall put others before me
I shall do my best
I shall persevere
I wish my dreams will come true
I wish your dreams will come true
I wish all living beings to live in peace and harmony with each other.
I wish that all humans would stop inflicting pain on themselves and other beings, human or not.
This is it! This is my list for 2016. It feels nice and empowering to allow all dreams to come to the surface! Now it is time to look at what I wrote last year. [searches for old posts on the internet and looks] Definitely some dreams came true. I can honestly say that some sort of tribe is growing (the picture featured in this post is your evidence). I found some financial stability and my house situation has improved too. I did create amazing experiences for my participants.
The cool thing about repeating this exercise every year is that you can see how some dreams come true and some dreams change a bit. In 2011 I want to live in a house big enough to give meditation courses from. Nowadays I have my own zendo (meditation hall), although it is not in my house. In 2011 I also wrote that I wanted to work with warm, brilliant, creative people and have lots of fun doing it and that I wanted to coach very talented people. Those dreams have manifested totally!
I just looked back at the posts from previous years. This is what I wrote in 2011 (Bali, Indonesia), this is what I wrote in 2012 (Tel Aviv, Israel) and this is what I wrote in 2013 (Cali, Colombia). Last year’s post (2015) was written in Amsterdam after coming back from a retreat in Sweden. You will notice that I have searched for love and stability for all those years but that I am improving at stability. Now love. 😉 Nevertheless many small and big dreams and intentions have manifested along the way and I had more adventures than I ever could imagine.
I recommend trying this exercise yourself. Jot down what feels real for you, without thinking, without holding back and without letting yourself be limited by concerns about money, time and responsibilities. If you are brave enough, post your results in the comments.
Have a beautiful, warm, loving, healthy, courageous and generous new year, everybody!
Warmly,
Atalwin
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