Why slowing down matters
Notes from snowy Northumberland and lessons from the Year of Becoming
Hello loves,
How are you - really?
It’s been a while since I wrote here thanks to my brain being full of Master’s dissertation. But with a blanket of snow carpeting the world outside my window, it feels like the perfect time to curl up and add some thoughts here.
And what better topic to share than slowing down - something that feels especially close to my heart when the world is cold and Lagertha is snoozing beside me?
Before I do that, let me first draw your attention to the beautiful image below which comes from local photographer Jim Scott (whose 2024 calendars share all manner of the magic of beautiful Northumberland!) and features Duddo Five Stones, an incredible site I was totally enchanted by when I visited earlier this year.
Why Slowing Down Matters: Lessons from the Year of Becoming
When I first started working with the idea of cyclical living – resting in the winter, just like the Earth – it sounded wonderful, but also completely unrealistic.
At the time, I was in a constantly busy corporate job – never more so than at the end of the calendar year.
Add to that Christmas parties and shopping – there was lots to deal with; it seemed impossible to rest.
In fact, it always seemed impossible to rest, regardless of the season.
But as time’s gone on, I’ve come to a place where I control my own schedule.
And I've realised I don’t just have a desire to slow down at this time of year, but an absolute need.
And though I know not everybody is self-employed and in control of their schedule. I know there are still busy times for people.
When I say slow down, I'm not suggesting we completely stop.
All I'm suggesting is that where and how we can, we take our foot off the gas a little bit and allow ourselves to breathe.
That’s not just about recouping out energy so we can race into the new year. Yes, I know, it’s really easy to think like that, but even that mindset sets a dangerous precedent.
To slow down and “winter” is also about letting the last year bed in.
We've had a busy year…
We’ve run through Springtime, which is about planting the seeds of what we want and taking action to make that happen.
We've dashed through Summer, which is ‘go go go’ as we bask in the warmth and brightness of all that is being built.
We've moved through Autumn – getting rid of the old, having a real good spring clean, and preparing ourselves to move into a place of whatever comes next.
We need to let all that settle.
As we near the end of the year – one I've semi-jokingly called my ‘Year of Becoming’ - it feels like I’m an entirely different person to the me I was in January.
Of course I know that’s not unique to me, nor to 2023. As we come to this time of year, with the biggest doorway of our calendar creeping into view on the horizon, it can often feels that way.
When we tune in and listen, we know ourselves more, and realise we end every significant period of time as a very different person.
But this year, I've found that more than ever.
And as I'm talking to my friends, clients and teachers, I'm hearing that sentiment echoed.
It feels like in 2023, we've come back to a place of our own selves.
The learnings and journeys that have led us here have started to take hold, and we’re ending the year in such a different (and perhaps unexpected) place.
That’s definitely the case for me – and it’s brilliant.
When I think of my ‘Year of Becoming’, I realise I’m more of the person I was always meant to be.
I've stepped away from the ‘musts’ and ‘need tos’, and let go of so many things that were needlessly taking my energy.
I've come back to a place of remembering who I am, what’s important to me, and where I'm going.
I’m moving forward deeper aligned than ever before – that's beautiful. But everything needs a little bit of time to bed in.
I've done so much reconnecting with myself this year that I haven't taken the time to let things settle.
I've had downloads and wisdom drops coming in every single week, sometimes every day or more. It's exciting – it’s changed and shown me so much.
But if I keep going at that pace forever, I'll burn out and won't know who I am anymore.
It's important to just slow down and take time.
So, this wintertime, I'm giving myself permission to take my foot off the gas, even more so than ever before.
That doesn't mean I'm not working – I am. I still need to pay the bills after all!
It doesn't mean I'm not Christmas shopping – I am. I love it, and I enjoy seeing friends and seeing family over the festive period!
What it does mean, is that whenever I can, I'm going to stop, rest, and listen to the cool crispness of winter.
I will…
Follow in the footsteps of the animals who hibernate at this time of year
Smell the cinnamon cookies in the air and the pine needles when they come out
Take time to stand and relish all the sparkles and beauty as it unfolds around me
Smell the snow, just like Lorelai Gilmore did, and drink hot cacao
Snuggle up in the softest pyjamas you've ever seen under a cosy blanket
Watch Christmas movies till I'm absolutely bored with the clichés
Sit and remember what it is to reconnect with the peace, quiet and stillness
And so, however your year has been, I invite each and every one of you to get quiet and still whenever and however you can; not to prepare for more busyness – just to let this year bed in.
And if the thought of that appeals but you’re finding that your busy brain already wants to dash ahead and look to next year’s plans and intentions, don’t panic. My 2024 Soul Readings are available now and are all about supporting you to start next year in a place of your own greatest power and wisdom.
This year’s Soul Readings will also come with an added invitation for you to spread love, as 50% of every reading sold in November (be it a 2024 Soul Reading or a full Soul Integration Reading) will be donated to the UNFPA’s emergency birth kit fund in support of those bringing new life into the world in the most challenging of circumstances.
I’ll be back next year with a fresher brain that is already excited to share with you more regularly and deeply in this space. But for now, I wish you the most beautiful and restful winter time, and lots of love.