It is the first day of this brand new year.  The celebration for last year is over and the planning for this year begins.  Many times we have high hopes for the new year that are quickly faced with what we think is the reality of our lives.

The excitement for a new beginning builds up, sometimes so much that when the new year arrives, we realize that the year has changed, but the days remain much the same.  The days change every day, but for some reason we may have thought that this changing of the year would be different.  Maybe we were hoping that this change would allow for us to put possibly an unpleasant year behind us, or maybe allow for us to create great things.

Sometimes the excitement of the new year lasts for days, weeks and even months.  However, it is only human nature for that excitement to wane at some period during the year.  For these reasons, we suggest that rather than making a “new year’s resolution” you decide what you would like your beacons to be and “plant” them.

For example, what are your life-long beacons that span this life and possibly other lifetimes?  Maybe it is, “I am happy,”  “I have the money that I need,” or “I am grateful.”  These life-long beacons are always there in our life.  Some moments we may have arrived at those beacons, such as “I am happy” and other moments the beacon may seem to be quite distant.

Life is always changing and our outlook on what seems to be “important” can change as well.  Life-long beacons, seldom change.  They are attainable at instances throughout your life, and then when you feel you have a grasp of it, it sometimes slips away and you need to work to get back to them.  Few people can always be in a state of happiness, for instance.

After you figure out some of your life-long beacons, you may want to then create other beacons that you feel will help contribute to those life-long beacons.  For example, if you have a life-long beacon of “I am happy” you might set some beacons that might contribute to that.  Possibly, a healthy body and healthy mind will contribute towards your happiness, so you might create beacons for those things.   “I am fit and energetic,”  or “I have a clear mind.”  Those are examples of some beacons that are still general in nature.

Other examples, might be, “I can do 100 push ups.”   That might be more specific towards the beacon of a healthy body.   Another might be, “I meditate  daily”, which will contribute to the “I have a clear mind” beacon.

These are just examples, the specific beacons need to be yours and yours alone.  Once you figure out some of your beacons, then you will need to define your next step.  Each morning, when you arise, or the night before, when you retire for the evening, you may want to write out or think about the next step towards those beacons.

The next step or steps may be easy ones, but the idea is that you take one or more steps each day towards those beacons.  It could be as simple as doing say one push up on your knees, or finding a phone number for a trainer, or calling a friend to see if he wants to walk with you.  It does not need to be difficult.

Story:  Lighting the Way

There once was a young couple who decided to sail to a small island off the shore of their country miles into the ocean.  They spent a beautiful day in the sun, snorkeling, and lying on the beach.  They spent the night by a fire that burned against the full moon, in the warmth of the sand from the day’s rays of sun.

The next morning they arose and decided to investigate the island before making their return trip home to the mainland.  They climbed hills overlooking the small island, covered in trees and foliage.   The rocks in the hill revealed a cave.  The cave was a ways away, but the couple decided to have a go at seeing if they could find it.  They climbed down the hill in the general direction of the cave they were able to see from high above the ground.

On the way, they noticed many creatures and animals come alive in the forest.  They could see ants building a home, and holes in the earth that most certainly  held a living creature.  The trees almost spoke to them as they made the hike.  The couple decided to stop for a break on a large flat rock that lie in the middle of a clearing.  They basked in the rays of the sun while lying on their back and eating some bread and crackers that they packed.   Life was about as perfect as they could imagine.

They could see some clouds building, so they decided to abandon the search for the cave and make their way back to their boat so they could return before dark.  When they arrived at the boat, they packed their things and pushed away from the island.   Arm and arm, they both sat at the helm looking back at the island from whence they came thinking about the next time they might return.

As they were pushing across the ocean, the waves began to grow a bit larger in size as the clouds grew darker.   The island was nowhere to be seen, and they decided to navigate towards the main land.   After some time, the waves grew yet larger in size as the wind pushed heavily into their faces.  The small boat motored along, but was slow to move against the strong head wind.

Darkness came upon them as the rain began to fall.   Soon the rain became torrential and the tiny light of the boat proved futile against the large waves and the darkness of the storm.  Periodically, they could see a clearing in the sky as the full moon lit the path to clear the darkness.   The couple used their compass to navigate the vessel as they fought the rain and wind to continue however slowly on their journey.

They both were scared but neither said anything as they managed to keep the vessel facing the waves and adjusting their course.   The rain stopped and the couple looked far in the distance where they could see a tiny slimmer of man-made light.  “It’s the lighthouse on the coast” said the man.  “Set the compass to point to it and we can use that as a guide to get us home.”

Throughout the night the light house would disappear in the darkness and in the large waves, but periodically they would find it again.  The compass helped them navigate as the tiny boat was continually being thrown off course.

Late into the night, the couple could see the light house shining brightly as they pointed the nose of the boat towards it.   Little by little they made their way until they could see the land where the light house stood.   Eventually, the couple docked their boat on the main land near the light house.

Exhausted, they fell asleep on the boat.  The next morning, they awoke looking at each other with a sense of relief.   They both knew that had they not seen the lighthouse shining brightly on the shore they may not have survived.

Sometime later, the couple came back to visit the place where they arrived in the dark of night, and hiked to the light house.   They climbed the steps spiraling to the top, where they talked to a man who operated the light house.  They thanked him for his dedication and work to keep it running and explained how it saved their lives.  The man did not say much, but smiled with a knowing look in his eyes.  For he knew that without a light to guide you, many people never find their way back home.

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The light house is often times referred to as a “beacon.”

InspiraCard

Place your “beacons” and let them help guide you home.  Find the beacon that is burning in your heart and let the world share in the light that it provides!

Written Wed Jan 1, 2014, 10:07 – 10:41 AM MT