Happy Holidays...

As the Holiday Season is upon us, we find ourselves reflecting on the past year and on those who have helped to shape our lives, career and business in a most significant way. We value our relationship with you and look forward to working with you in the year to come.

We wish you a very happy Holiday Season and a New Year filled with peace and prosperity.

Reflections on Life…

Let’s look at some areas of life that might require attention....

• Health - Are you taking care of yourself? If not, what do you need to do to improve your health? What are five ways you can live a more healthful lifestyle?
• Love - Are you a loving person? Think about it. We think about love as a spouse or a girlfriend, a partner. There is more to love then a committed partnership. In what ways can we become more loving individuals?
• Work - Do you love the work you do? Does it support you or enliven you? If you dream of work you love consider using the next year as the starting ground to live that vision.
• Money - Many people who use their money for good. The more they have the more they give. Does your money support just you or the world? No matter how much or little you make your money can make a difference.

Reverence For Life

When reflecting on one’s life acknowledge all that has past – both good and bad. Honor it. Your past informs your present and gives hope for the future. In his book, Reverence: Renewing a Forgotten Virtue, author Paul Woodruff says this – "Reverence begins in a deep understanding of human limitations; from this grows the capacity to be in awe of whatever we believe lies outside our control – God, truth, justice, nature, even death. The capacity for awe, as it grows, brings with it the capacity for respecting fellow human beings, flaws and all." We can’t control the outcome of our life but we can approach it with reverence, honoring our traditions and respecting the life we are given.

In examining your life you may find places of great depth and of lack. Consider some things you may want to pursue. Benjamin Franklin would examine his life in great detail. He would review and acknowledge his weaknesses concentrating his efforts to improve upon them He was cultivating virtues instead of vices. You can continue to cultivate those things that are important while working on the areas where you may be weaker.

Reflection and Discovery

The years go by so fast – what did we do? The end of any year brings an assortment of TV shows reflecting on the past year. There are the celebrity happenings, the health breakthroughs, election results, and the parade of the famous that have passed away. But our lives are not reflected there. What has been important for us? What seemingly unimportant thing has had a profound impact on our lives? At beginning of a new year, a new season or a significant change we are confronted with what we have left undone. The gym shoes sit unused. The novel is unwritten.

What did we do that we wish we could take back? The apology we meant to deliver sits on our desk. We forgot to tell a dear friend we loved them and now it is too late. We are full of regrets of the past and hope for something better. The giddiness of the New Year is bittersweet. We are reflective, becoming sad - we must leave something behind. In our culture we can become afraid of the depth of this sadness. We remember the family members that are now gone and the friends who have moved on. Then there is the weight we gained - the loss of our youthful bodies.

We look at the past and it reflects back to us. Sometimes we don’t want do look back and see – but we must. Our life’s reflection provides an opportunity for growth – transformation. There are things we can’t change yet there are thing still to do. What can we give?