Sometimes I think life is like dancing. Sometimes it just flows and it’s lovely and we’re one with the music and the movement. It’s magic that we remember long after the moment ends. Other times it’s all we can do to watch our feet and try to keep on them. It’s as if we’ve forgotten how all the parts work together and we’re our own worst enemy. And then there are those times where we’re in total concert with ourselves, but either we or the music are off somehow and we can’t get back together again which is just awkward.
Just as in dance, the grand movements, the flashy gestures, the death-defying leaps and lifts are what gain our attention, but dancing, like life, is actually about the transitions. You can tell when a dancer is struggling because they begin to focus only on a particular set of moves and the sections don’t link up together. The dance becomes “technical” and about the math of movement rather than being moving. A dancer who is on their game makes it look easy because they focus on all of it, on being in it, on the transitions as much as the grand moves, and so everything flows.
This week between Christmas and New Years is our preparation to transition between one year and the next, one movement and the next, one breath and the next. We are moving from a year of practical application, of building what we had dreamed and coming to terms concerning what we had built or what we had torn down in order to complete a cycle. Dreams have come true, unreal expectations have been shattered, and life has moved us forward even if we resisted the change. The year we are moving into is one of magic and potential. It’s a dreaming and creative year again as things cycle into the what could be. However, unlike 2012’s Dragon (Spirit) or 2014’s Horse (Emotions), 2016 is the Red Fire Monkey (Mind) which is full of magic and possibility, opportunities and inventions, but also misconception, misdirection, misunderstandings and mistakes. So before we go charging into a year with no missteps in it yet, it can be handy to pay attention to the transition. Take stock of what has happened in this year, what you have gained, what you have learned, what you have to work with going forward, and most importantly who you have become. You are your best ally in the year to come. Take a moment to gather yourself and prepare to move gracefully into the New Year.