A wonderful punctuation mark

how "between the years" gives us space to think about the next year

Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash

I showed up to a yoga class the other evening that wasn’t actually running. It’s because I am in that liminal space between Christmas and New Year. My friend tells me the Dutch call it “between the years” which seems right. Here in Australia all the school age children are on holidays and many many adults are too. It’s generally warm and it’s swimming weather. Days are spent sleeping in, reading books, swimming in oceans, pools and rivers, eating leftovers at odd times and in odd combinations and looking for new ways to eat ham. And none of us know what day it is…hence my showing up to yoga on the wrong day. Many of my friends report that it’s their favourite time of the year.

The pillars, Mount Martha

Here in the southern hemisphere, the end of the calendar year, coinciding with our long summer holidays, feels like a wonderful punctuation mark. With nothing to do and nowhere to be, many turn their minds to resolutions for the following year.

Not me, I learned my lesson many years ago. New Year's resolutions were always too onerous really, with an inbuilt judgement or punishment. I usually made ones that saw me wanting to be different in some way or to stop something. They never ever motivated me at all. So the making of the resolution was fairly swiftly followed by the breaking of the resolution with all the attendant guilt and shame.

About 5 or 6 years ago, no doubt influenced by an influencer, I hit upon the notion of choosing a word for the year ahead. Now I see that capitalism has stamped its mark on even this and there are workbooks and journal exercises and workshops and facebook groups to help you bring that word to action. All for a price. I take a DIY approach and as the end of one year comes around I start to mull over what I want more of the following year. Or where I might put my effort or focus.

One of my favourites was inspired by Elizabeth Gilbert who wrote a small piece about the impact of a bus driver on his passengers. He invited all exiting passengers to drop their troubles into his outstretched palm. She talked about his role in illuminating dark days or moments and posed a question: But what if you are the light? I loved this piece and sentiment so much. It was what I was looking for as inspiration for the following year's focus. So many new year's resolutions and guiding words have an internal focus. I was drawn to something outside of myself, to be of service, to illuminate. So that year my word was a phrase, “what if you are the light?” and it invited me every day in every interaction to be the light for someone else. It felt nourishing and joyful and was just the thing I needed that year to get out of my own stuff.

The lovely image a friend made me for my phrase of the year.

This last year I chose “body” as my word. After a lifetime cultivating my mind to be its best, and with a body that had been through the wringer with long covid I decided it was time to pay it some attention.

I didn’t take up bodybuilding but I did look for more opportunities to strengthen and to appreciate what my body could do for me. I returned to the gym, which I have written about, and am increasingly proud of how my body grows stronger. I committed to my body, and whilst I still do not love the discipline or the practice of heading to the gym I feel it’s been the right thing to do to honour the body I have, so that it can take me though until the end.

I also took time and looked for opportunities for my body to feel good. Yoga, massages, ocean swims, cold water plunges, saunas, hiking, sailing, wind on my face and touch all got top billing this year.

For 2025 I have landed on “craft”. For some reason I am drawn to the idea of being more intentional in many of the things I do. I am lucky in that I am quite good at quite a lot of things without trying too hard. I don’t excel at anything and I am a great believer in near enough being good enough. This has served me well. But it feels like time to make or produce things with more care and skill. To go beyond what I can do fairly easily and to deliberately seek out new skills. So I am giving myself permission to spend time honing some skills and enjoying the process and to offer more care to the things I do. Front of mind is creating a new garden; also baking, weaving, homemaking and writing.

If 2024 has been kind to you and yours I am glad, if it has not I hope that a new calendar year might bring some new joy and relief from troubles. And for all of us I wish more of those days when we have no idea what the day of the week is!