End the Year Strong

As a working mom, I feel a huge push to optimize EVERTHING in the last 31 days of the year.

At work it’s all about the “final push!” We need to do everything we can to bring in every last dollar and every single case. We have meetings and brainstorming sessions to ensure we have left nothing on the table.

At home we are in full blown Christmas mode. We are in a full-blown decorating, picture taking, cookie making, party planning, gift wrapping, optimizing whirlwind.

It’s all incredibly fun, exciting, and exhausting.

Is this the best way to end a year?

A New Perspective

2023 was a BIG year. A lot has happened to reflect on. Activities, accomplishments, mistakes, adventures, and missed opportunities. What did the year look like for you? Is it worth it to speed through December as intensely as humanly possible only to collapse Jan 1 and start “a new?”

I think there is an opportunity to set intentions for December to experience the end of year a little bit differently.

In church on Sunday we learned about what it looks like when “A weary world rejoices.” We reflected on the example of Elizabeth and Mary in their preparation for a new season and the actions they took: Solitude and Forging meaningful relationships with others.

This is an inspiring perspective. Creating space and time for solitude and reflection to ask honest questions and learn from the last 11 months. Then moving from solitude to forging meaningful relationships.

This does NOT mean over extending ourselves to show up at every event, party, and volunteer opportunity we can cram in. It means, confiding in and connecting with loved ones and repairing, building and fostering our relationships.

Tough Questions

In the past, I have used the “craziness of December” as an excuse to push through and end the year without reflecting honestly about anything. I have gone into the new year with a “well now that that’s over with!” type of perspective.

My resolutions always tend to by highly aspirational instead of rooted in current reality. This year I want to do things differently. I want to spend time in December uncovering what I need by asking some tough, honest questions:

1. Am I where I want to be in my career, health, family life?
2. Do my actions reflect my goals for physical health?
3. Have I given myself credit for the risks I have taken?
4. Am I giving myself a chance to persue my passions?
5. Am I serving others to the degree I feel called?
6. What I am I feeling called to?
7. What am I being called away from?
8. What am I resisting/pushing away?

These questions are ones I have been pushing off this fall. I have used work, travel, commitments, and exhaustion as the reasons I could not carve out time for myself and dig in to the hard stuff. Asking and digging through these questions will be a big part of my intentional December.

Setting Intentions

Setting intentions does not need to be complicated or challenging. Take a moment to close your eyes, take three deep breaths, and ask yourself what you need in this season.

Here are my intentions for December (you can steal as many as you want!)

1. Light a candle every morning
2. Start every morning with reading/prayer
3. Journal for 20 minutes (Dig in to the tough questions)
4. Reflect on where the word “SHOULD” shows up for me
5. No air travel
6. Prioritize HEALTH (scheduled a procedure I have been putting off)
7. Nightly snuggles and Reading/Holiday movie watching with the kids and WITHOUT phones
8. Say yes to activities and get togethers that will involve holiday cheer, belly laughs, connection (sometimes including crucial conversations) and much needed hugs

This is not a list from which I expect perfect performance. This is a roadmap of how I want to consciously and intentionally spend my favorite season of the year.

I have big plans for myself in 2024 and a December routed in reflection, connection and small steps is just what I need to end the year in a way that is inline with how I want to start off the new year.

What intentions will you set for December?