Message for January 2018
It’s easy to reach the end of a
year realising we’ve failed to achieve the goals we set twelve months
before. We may take a deep breath and then resolve, once again, that
this year will be the year we finally make those dreams come true. Yet,
maybe looking at goals in such a way is setting ourselves up for
failure? Instead of seeking out goals with finite answers, maybe we
should instead focus on the bigger picture? For example, instead of
setting a goal to lose a stone in weight, would a better focus be on
getting fitter and healthier? Instead of wanting to achieve x, y or z to
be happy, why not simply focus on being happier without the caveats? As
long as we continue to have strict measures that rule and dictate our
successes and failures then we leave little wiggle room. Is life really
so black and white?
We often criticise and judge ourselves
harshly for the things we haven’t done but we ignore the things we have
achieved. It seems a part of human nature to focus on the negatives and
this can drive a vicious cycle of never feeling like we are enough. We
may strive to be like everyone else without ever really considering the
fact that everyone has struggles, as perfection doesn’t exist. The
notion of ‘I want what they have’ is another part of human nature but
this is a result of the ‘grass is always greener’ effect and this can
also extend the gap between where we are and where we think we need to
be. Instead of using the perceived success or happiness of others as a
measure of our own happiness, it’s important to realise we are all
unique and what works for one won’t necessarily work for another.
It
seems important that instead of self-judgement we begin to learn how to
be more loving and compassionate with ourselves. This involves a degree
of acceptance along with a modicum of willingness to re-wire our brains
with new ways of living and being. It’s only natural to start a new
year thinking about how to begin this new chapter and wanting to finally
achieve all of those many things still outstanding on our ‘to do’ lists
but maybe by shifting the focus away from goals that are black and
white to ones that allow breathing space for the inevitability of
everyday life, we don’t start the year setting ourselves up to feel like
failures if, for some reason, we do not achieve them?
This isn’t
about dodging responsibility or circumnavigating the need to take an
active role in re-shaping our lives, it’s a willingness to realise that,
as human beings, nothing is ever black and white. The more we judge and
criticise ourselves, the more out of balance we become and we then run
the risk of feeling unable to truly live until we’ve achieved our goals
or resolutions. Life is so much more fluid and unpredictable than that
and once we accept this and find more loving and nurturing ways to
achieve the things we want to achieve, celebrating the things we do
rather than focusing on the things we don’t, then we stand a good chance
of finding a deeper and more enriching happiness.
So, instead of
reeling off a ‘to do’ list of quantifiable goals that we either achieve
or don’t, maybe we’d be better to focus on simpler things such as
finding happiness or joy allowing the finer details to take care of
themselves? External goals rarely prove as satisfying as we hope, so why
not focus on creating a sense of well-being which allow us to ride the
inevitable ebb and flow of life with graceful majesty? This is a year to
focus on creating harmony within in order to carry it into every aspect
of life and to stop giving ourselves such a hard time. In short, 2018
looks set to be a year where what’s inside really does re-shape and
re-define the world in which we live…
With love,
Sarah-Jane
Aries
♈
January
looks set to mark the beginning of a pivotal and affirming year for you
as you finally begin to reap the rewards for all of your hard work and
dedication, particularly when it comes to your inner world. You have
long tried to shift the balance within in order to feel more comfortable
with your strength, power and passion; there have been many times when
you’ve pushed it away as it somehow felt inappropriate or misplaced.
Pushing it away or squashing it within has always been so hard for you
as you’ve felt a build-up of pressure and you have intuitively known
that, if unresolved, it will suddenly burst out at the most inopportune
moments. Such outbursts of emotion are often hard to manage as they are
often boisterous and unruly, so, maybe it’s now time to find ways of
honouring your strength, passion and power as they are gifts, not
curses?
You are a vibrant and gifted soul, so why not let your
true essence flow and then channel your gifts into aspects of life that
make your heart sing? You have always had a vision of how you’d like to
live your life and there have often been reasons why you couldn’t make
the changes necessary, particularly those further driven by your doubts,
but you have now reached a crossroads and you have the chance to shake
free from patterns of old in order to re-shape and re-define your path
ahead. If you take a moment, just a brief moment, to close your eyes and
take a deep breath, you can feel your strength, passion and power
swirling around within you. It’s always there and always with you; you
just now need to decide to let it flow freely and breathe energy into
the brand new you…
Taurus
♉
As you
step into 2018 there is a sense of clarity and lucidity as you seem to
have condensed and distilled the experiences of the past year into a
potent and powerful vision as to how you want to live your life. You
have learned many lessons, sorted the wheat from the chaff when it comes
to things that nourish you and things that deplete you, and opened up
your heart and soul with a willingness to gaze deeply within. You have
learned a great deal about yourself and you are now wiser, and more
resolved, to build a strong connection with your essence and sense of
self in order to step more consciously forwards in life. You seem ready,
almost bursting at the seams, to charge ahead with your ideas as they
have been a long time forming. Now you have stripped back the
distractions and peeled back to the truth, you have realised what truly
makes your heart sing and this realisation is so important as it will
help you to channel your wisdom and knowledge towards living a more
fulfilling and fulfilled life.
It seems the more you honour your
true essence, the greater sense of peace you will begin to create. Your
tenacity, courage and talent can inspire you to reach beyond the
boundaries of the four walls of your everyday life into pastures new as
you seek out new adventures and new ways of living and being. You seem
ready now to break free from the treadmill of keeping on keeping on in
order to raise the bar when it comes to your dreams and goals. You’re a
practical and innovative soul, and, if you listen to your intuition to
guide you, you will feel the confidence rising up from within and this
will inspire you to focus on what truly makes your heart sing…
Gemini
♊
As
you continue to formulate a stronger sense of self, along with a
clearer vision for your path ahead, it seems you are beginning to find
peace with the jumbled-up nature of life. You have always loved to ask
the ‘big questions’ in life (why are you here? What is your purpose?
etc.), challenging the status quo and trying to make sense of why things
are the way they are. Although you acknowledge the inherent randomness
of many life events, you are the one who has always looked for a higher
or deeper meaning as making sense of it all has helped you to anchor
yourself into the here and now. You have a need to rationalise the
irrational and a desire to quantify the unquantifiable as you constantly
push at the boundaries you perceive to be holding you back in life;
your thirst for wisdom, knowledge and understanding is breath-taking.
Yet,
you’ve now realised that this constant questioning doesn’t really
anchor you as it still leaves you floating somewhat aimlessly in
existential meanderings as you have no respite from it. However, the
more you have acknowledged your tendency to do this, the more you have
come to accept that sometimes life just doesn’t make sense and rather
than let this disempower you, you have found a sense of peace with the
jumbled-up, irrationality of it all. You have started to find peace with
the equation of life not being clear-cut and you have also started to
see the unknowable nature of life as a gift rather than an irksome
frustration as it has the capacity to take you towards a way of living
and being that inspires you to wholeheartedly accept the wisdom of not
knowing as being just as important as the wisdom of knowing...
Cancer
♋
January
looks set to be a month of high energy as you begin to gain a much
stronger sense of your personal destiny. You may feel slightly perplexed
at this point as your life is simply so busy with things to do, people
to see, books to read and places to go, you haven’t got much capacity
left to even contemplate a destiny! However, if you take a deep breath
and go beyond the hustle and bustle of keeping on keeping on, you will
begin to reconnect to your true essence: that part of you where dreams
are made. Life may be full of distractions but you are never far away
from that inner sense of connection to ‘something bigger and better’.
You have been rolling ideas and dreams around your head for quite some
time now, not really knowing what to do with them as the time hasn’t
felt right and circumstances haven’t afforded you the space to focus on
them.
However, the balance is shifting as you begin to step beyond
the saturation of busy-ness and open up your heart and soul towards
realising that there will always be things to do, people to see and
places to go but these are simply a part of the nuts and bolts of life,
if you let them take over then you will always have reasons ‘not to’ and
your dreams will start gathering dust and lose their shiny, glittering
hue. It’s understandable to be cautious as you’ve had your toes burned
in the past, so the status quo of ticking along feels quite comfortable
to you. Yet, your heart and soul are longing for something more and the
more you look beyond the distractions, the more confident you will feel
to allow your vibrancy, passion and energy to lead the way…
Leo
♌
January
looks set to be a month to find new ways to let your inner strength and
vitality flow freely. You have a natural fiery roar in your belly so
speaking your mind and standing your ground are not usually things you
find challenging but there is a sense that you haven’t been fully in
touch with this inner fire over recent weeks and months and, as a
result, you have struggled to assert yourself in many different areas of
your life. This has left you feeling disconnected and out of sorts as
you have wondered why you have been so passive lately as you can feel
the fires within but they just don’t seem to be burning with any gusto.
Of course, this feels so out of character for you, it’s understandably
stirring up some inner restlessness. At the same time, without your
inner fire roaring, connecting to your usually creative, innovative and
courageous energy has been challenging.
It seems that part of the
problem is a blurring of the lines when it comes to defining your
intent; your vision of what you truly want seems a tad vague and
unclear, and this has led to a slightly wishy-washy appearance to your
usual determined state of mind. The most likely explanation for all of
this is a combination of giving so much to others without regard for
your own well-being leaving you depleted, and secondly, scattering your
energy by trying to achieve too many dreams and goals at once as you
then cannot focus on any of them with much clarity or momentum.
Establishing balance therefore seems the best way to re-connect to your
inner fire and this comes from taking a little time each day to breathe
deeply, to feel the fire within you and honour yourself more from the
inside, out…
Virgo
♍
You have always
been someone who likes to be busy, ticking off your forever-growing ‘to
do’ list and using your inner sense of personal growth to be your
guiding light when it comes to setting the pace, shape and form of how
you live your life. As a result, you have achieved a great deal, and you
have grown and evolved, becoming a very different you to the you of
yesteryear. However, there is a sense of a need now for you to shift the
focus away from doing so much towards living more consciously and
reconnecting to your deeper sense of self. Whilst this isn’t likely to
stop you from your love of ‘doing’, it is likely to inspire you to let
go and trust rather more. It’s important to remember that letting go is
not giving up or walking away, it’s a willingness to trust to the flow
of life and to live in a more intuitive and self-aware way.
It
takes great courage and strength to let go as it means stepping beyond
the four walls of your everyday life and venturing into pastures new. It
also means listening to your finally tuned intuition much more in order
to navigate your path ahead in ways determined more by your heart and
soul than simply your need for personal growth. Whilst you are more than
ready for new terrain to explore, you are also quite settled in the
realm of keeping on keeping on as it has allowed you to tick along quite
methodically. Yet, you know that ticking along, whilst comfortable,
isn’t really what makes you thrive as you love the throng of a challenge
as it’s the territory where you come into your own and shine. So,
January looks set to be a month for letting go of preconceptions and
wholeheartedly embracing the essence of being you…
Libra
♎
As
you continue to step beyond the boundaries of your everyday life in
order to explore your true nature and to re-connect to your dreams,
there is a sense you are beginning to feel more connected to a new way
of living and being. You have long contemplated a life where you are
free to fulfil your hopes and embrace your dreams, and you have spent a
long time shaping this in your mind. Yet, if you were to pause and be
asked to outline your dream existence, you may stumble and stutter,
struggling to clearly define it as it somehow seems quite woolly around
the edges. Although you have pondered such a life for a long time, you
haven’t had the time, energy or focus recently to check back in to
ensure it’s still the life you truly want to live. Of course, in many
ways, until you are living it you can never really know if it’s the life
you long for, but it’s hard to make it a reality unless it makes your
heart sing and your soul dance as it’s your passion, innovation,
intellect and lively spirit that ultimately drive you forwards.
The
main reason for this slight discrepancy seems to be because you live in
a kind of kaleidoscopic whirlwind of possibilities, ideas and thoughts,
so honing things down to the basics isn’t something you do very often.
You are a bigger picture kind of person; however, sometimes you need to
think about the details as they help to bring shape and form or you run
this risk of metaphorically running around in circles reaching towards
your dreams but without really knowing how or why. You are on the verge
of a brand-new chapter in your life so make the most of this opportunity
to re-shape and re-define exactly what makes your heart sing…
Scorpio
♏
Liberation
and freedom look set to be your keywords in January as you begin the
year with a clear sense of where you’ve been and where you’re heading.
At the same time, and rather unusually for you, you also have a strong
sense of where you are now. This is unusual for you as you are such a
fluid soul and you often drift with the currents of life rather than
taking the helm. However, this is much more a perception than reality
for, in truth, there is no one as strong and sure-footed as you! The
reason you give off a kind of floaty, drifty waft is because you hide
your depths incredibly well and you can seem disconnected when you are,
in fact, quite the opposite. As a result, you have developed something
of a reputation for being one of life’s dreamers and, over time, you
have bought into this, believing yourself to be generally much more
passive than you truly are.
Of course, when you go deeper within,
intuitively you can sense your strength and vision, but these get lost
in the distractions of everyday life. In many ways, floating along has
suited you as it has made for an easier and quieter life, and, as a
result, you have left your dreams to tick along in the background.
However, this has led to a build-up of pressure within as you are not
being true to yourself, so you are damming yourself up within to be
something you intrinsically are not. Denying your own essence restrains
you and suffocates you, and you have reached a point where you are no
longer able to just be the person everyone else wants you to be without
being your true Self as well. You already know how to shift the intent,
so take a deep breath and shine…
Sagittarius
♐
January
looks set to be a month for some much-needed breathing space as you
take some time to re-establish balance in your life. It’s a time to
think about the life you’ve been living, the life you’ve lived and the
life you still hope to live; it’s time to think about how to bring your
life back into kilter with the life you intuitively know you were born
to live. You may well notice a gap between where you are and where you
want to be, but it’s important to acknowledge that you will always be
striving towards new horizons as that’s a part of your pioneering,
free-spirited nature. You are never content to stay in the same place
for long as you thrive on the spontaneity and adventure of exploring new
terrain and pushing your boundaries as much as possible. So, try to see
the gap as a part of the bigger picture, rather than an obstacle.
At
the same time, such a shift in attitude will help you to stop thinking
about the gap as the main challenge and re-focus you on the more
important aspect of living the life you were born to live! It seems the
‘gap’ has become reasons not to, the gap allows you to drift off into
distractions and the gap stops you from fully connecting to your
effervescent, sparkling and dancing free-spirit as it’s become a chain
around your neck. This is all a matter of perception as once you realise
the gap is simply part of the process of being alive, it becomes a part
of the vision of your life rather than something to overcome before you
can live your life. It’s time to stop procrastinating and time to start
doing as you are ready now to breathe deeply into life whilst allowing
life to breathe deeply into you…
Capricorn
♑
January
looks set to be a month for an internal overhaul as you begin to
re-shape and re-define your thoughts, beliefs and dreams. You have
reached something of a turning point when it comes to embracing the
concept of wholehearted and conscious living, as you have stepped beyond
the idea that this is some kind of ‘namby pampby’ silliness and instead
realised that wholehearted living is about living in ways that feed
your spirit and bring you joy. This is quite a monumental shift in you
and, as a result, you are beginning to think more deeply about how you
live your life as you are eager to sort the wheat from the chaff in
order to live a life that feeds your spirit and makes your heart sing.
As a result, you may feel that you have a way to go in order to get to
such a point and you may be tempted to start thinking about how much
greener the grass looks on the other side of the fence and how brightly
the sun shines on the other side of the hill.
It’s human nature to
do this even though you intuitively know it’s not helpful, however,
don’t give yourself a hard time for doing what comes naturally! It’s
easy to contemplate how much better things may be ‘over there’,
particularly when things ‘over here’ are not quite as good as you would
want them to be, but don’t weaponise this against yourself, instead use
this as a reference point to shape the internal overhaul mentioned above
as the more you start picking holes, the harder it will be to maintain
the momentum that’s rising up from deep within your heart and soul.
Don’t get lost in the details and don’t over-think it, instead trust
your own wisdom to guide you and let the concept of wholehearted living
become your everyday…
Aquarius
♒
January
looks set to be a month of inspired vision and creative innovation as
you open up to a brand-new way of living and being. You have let go of
some long-held beliefs which have shaped and defined your path in life
for a long time and you are beginning to feel the presence of the
wanderer within as you untie the restraints and begin to think about
what you truly want in life. Letting go of those ‘ought’s’ and
‘should’s’ have been liberating as you are now free to connect to your
inner wanderer - your expansive, adventurous and curious spirit - and
allow this energy to flow freely through every nook and cranny of your
life. Try not to fill the newly created spaces left behind by these old
beliefs with new beliefs and ideas, why not leave the spaces as spaces
for a while and see what happens? Sometimes it’s the gaps and the spaces
where true inspiration resides and if you fill it all up then you choke
and clutter up your inner wanderer, limiting your ability to thrive.
At
the same time, why not make the most of the extra space to breathe more
deeply and to establish a stronger and truer sense of balance? You have
spent a great deal of your life trying to be the person you thought you
ought to be and suddenly you now have an opportunity to be the person
you want to be. Although you have long had ideas as to the life you want
to live, take your time to sharpen your vision before charging ahead as
it’s important to make the most of such a wonderful and life-affirming
opportunity. Don’t forget that the thrust of this opportunity comes from
your own willingness to let your inner wanderer out, so what happens
next is in your hands…
Pisces
♓
January
looks set to be a month for you to bring together the many different
facets of your life into a more unified and cohesive whole. You have
spread yourself thinly over recent weeks and months as you have tried to
be everything to everyone. Of course, this is not unusual for you as
you often give everything of yourself for others, and you already know
the cost of this as it can leave you feeling depleted but, at the same
time, it also warms your heart as you love to feel like you are making a
difference. Yet, when you step back to look at the bigger picture of
your life, you can see that the perspective you have of your life is
quite different to the reality you are living as you cannot continually
give so much without withering slightly as a result, but you don’t like
to accept this as a reality so you try to ignore it!
It’s time now
for you to take a good look at the bigger picture of your life with
complete honesty in order to see how you can feed your soul and live a
more balanced and affirming way. This isn’t about stopping giving to
others, it’s more about not forgetting to give to yourself as well. It’s
also about realising that unless this equation balances out you will
reach a point when you can no longer give much of yourself as your tank
has run dry as even compassionate, free-spirited, giving souls like you
need fuel. This is a shift to celebrate as it will inspire you with a
new momentum of both energy and vision, enabling you to re-shape your
life and to find new ways to live a richer and more fulfilling life. In
short, this is your time to blossom…
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as long as copyright and contact information are always included. Thank
you for your courtesy. Sarah-Jane Grace
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