Hello Everyone! Happy solar eclipse and new moon today! Although today's solar eclipse is not visible in the US, today is an auspicious day to clean our slate and start something new!
If you are interested in astrology, you might already know that every new moon signifies the start of something new. Today's new moon in Libra will kick start a new phase of your life that will last until the next full moon in Libra on March 25, 2025. So whatever you choose to start now will come to fruition around the end of March. So why not take advantage of this energy of newness and make a wish upon a star today?
Sometimes a simple question like "What do you want?" can become very complicated and challenging. Some (well, I believe many of us reading this blog) are classic people-pleasers (...ahem, me included), and it is sometimes very, very hard to know what we want. Our vision is often clouded by what we think others want or need, and we can't separate ourselves from the responsibilities and obligations we are compelled to fulfill.
Do we really know what we want? Have we had a chance to take time to ourselves, dig deep, and have a very honest conversation with ourselves?
And this leads to this week's journal topic:
Think about what you want in your life - try your best not to think of other people in your life you need to serve or the role you need to fulfill in the society. Think of who you want to become if you are not attached to anyone or any role. Write down all your thoughts.
Let's take me for an example: it took me a long time to start this blog. The idea of doing a weekly blog like this was there for a long time, probably about two years before I actually started it, but I used every excuse possible to procrastinate and not do it. When I kept asking myself "What do I want in this life?" and "How can I be more authentic to myself?" what came to me was to use every opportunity out there to express myself fully and share what I have learned through my spiritual journey. This is very important for my healing journey because as I went deeper and deeper in this journey, holding a safe space for healing, for myself and others, became a requirement, not an option. And that needed to be my priority before my art business and my family's role as a Mom.
This may not be an easy topic for some of you, and I totally understand because I was there for a long time. Every time I tried to answer that question, I had nothing but total emptiness while I had a long list of things I wanted to do to help someone else or something else. If this is you, accept that as is. It's OK, and you needed this moment to see that for yourself. This simply means that you need to learn to look at yourself and listen to yourself more. Helping others can be very fulfilling and rewarding - while there is nothing wrong with helping others, we can sometimes use that as a crutch and not work on ourselves. If this is the case, use this as an opportunity to look at yourself - where do you place your priority and why?
Many of us, especially women, are raised to put ourselves last and serve others first. While selfless service and thoughtfulness are beautiful practices, they can derail you from pursuing your true mission and purpose if you solely focus on serving others. This is how we sometimes make ourselves depleted and exhausted. We must heal and feel full of energy and passion before we heal others. No one can make you heal but you.
I used to feel as though knowing what I wanted and pursuing it was selfish. But that was because I was taught that serving others was a woman's role. It is easy to be an obedient and perfect servant, but it is also the surest way to make your life miserable. Now that I am on this journey of healing and self-discovery, I see things very differently. The most important task of our lives is to define who we are by going deep within, to discover why we are here, and know what we want because no one else can do it for us.
So wherever you are on your healing journey, take your time discovering yourself. You may not have the answer to today's prompt now- keep asking, keep being curious, and keep holding a safe space to express yourself fully. Even if it does not seem like it, you are being guided, and one day you will see a clear answer from the Universe.
If you are curious and seeking more on this topic, listen to a guided meditation on "Why am I Here?" and "Mindset Shift", and a 1-hour Dive Deeper Discussion, "Discovering Your North Star: Unleashing Your Life's Purpose".
Happy journaling,
Noriko
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