Welcome to the finale of The Pause for 2021. Come on in and make yourself comfortable.
We’re here, y’all. In the 18th issue of The Pause, we pause to say farewell to 2021.
If our years looked anything similar, you had a little touch of it all: the brilliant, the tragic, the unexpected, the joyful, the disappointing, the challenging, and the miraculous.. an entire hodgepodge of experiences, feelings, and lessons wrapped up into one, 365-day, chapter of life. A big, hearty cheers to you for making it to this moment.
2021 was a homecoming and rebirth of sorts for me. As I began to find my footing as a woman who is simultaneously also a partner, mother, daughter, sister, and friend, I was pushed to become more-decisive, more-calibrated, more-intentional, and less-concerned-about-others’-feelings-about-me. This was wildly uncomfortable at times, especially given my ever-unlearning relationship with people-pleasing, but has ultimately led me to a place where I respect and love myself deeper than ever before.
2021 is also the year I made the decision to get back into writing after a year-plus hiatus, and.. man, I was super nervous about it. I wasn’t convinced I had “it” in me anymore, but I decided to give writing a newsletter again a shot anyways and wow, I’m so grateful I did. The Pause has become a bright spot in my life. The effect these moments have had on our collective community — every individual text and email I’ve received when a message really hits home — gets me really excited for what’s to come in 2022.
Thank you for trusting me with your time and inbox space these past nine months, and thank you for sharing when a message or issue resonates with you. I appreciate how meaningful these moments have become that we spend together, and I hope you do, too.
As for today.. instead of focusing on setting goals for 2022, or digging into what we learned in 2021, I’d like to give us a moment to simply pause and be here in the present. No agenda. Nothing to-do. Just you and me. Here, in the present, for a moment before we say goodbye to 2021.
Settle in, take a deep breath, and get ready to pause in 3...2...1...
💝 Be Here
As the final days of December have come and gone, I notice myself casually flipping between reflecting on the past year and making plans for the year ahead.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; I love a good reflection session, and I love a good dreaming session.. especially towards the end of the year, analyzing the decisions of my past and imagining the decisions of my future feels semi-sacred and necessary for finding my sea-legs in the new year.
However, as I sit here writing to you, I wonder whether all this emphasis on reflecting and imagining is getting in the way of me actually just being in the present. I’m investing so much time in reflecting on who I’ve been in the past year and planning who I want to be by the end of next year that I’m forgetting to invest time in being who I am, now.
So I thought, on this final day of the year, it’d be really nice to encourage us all to pause and simply be here. To invest a moment in appreciating our surroundings, wherever we may be. To give ourselves the opportunity to feel what it means to be alive as the individuals we are today.
⏸ Pause & Reconnect
**Enjoy. Remember, there are no right or wrong answers; just what’s true for you.**
Look up and take note of what’s around you right now. What do you see? Hear? Feel?
What’s one thing around you that you’re grateful for?
What’s one thing around you that brings you joy?
What’s one piece of praise you’d like to give yourself?
What’s one thing you love about yourself?
Enjoy the remaining moments of 2021, my friend. Be safe. Celebrate however your heart desires, and know I’ll be wishing you love as the clock strikes midnight tonight.
Until we meet again. 🖤
- L
Such an awesome way to "be" today. 😊