Living
The New Year is a time to reflect on joy, hope, and tradition
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January is a time for blessings, for joy, and for considering and perhaps resetting our ethical stances.
The Wild Hunt (https://wildhunt.org/author/clio/page/6)
January is a time for blessings, for joy, and for considering and perhaps resetting our ethical stances.
Long or short, we enter this world alone, and usually, we leave alone. The comfort we give each other during our lifetime is what we hope will be extended to us during the actual process of dying, as well as the moments surrounding death.
Like an obstetrician caring for a pregnant woman, there are always two clients in caregiving: the actual loved one who is ill and the caregiver. We are not robots. One of the hardest lessons to learn during the time I cared for my mother was to take care of myself by learning how to say “no” and when to say “yes”.
Three things mark this season of death and remembrance for me: the severe drop in temperatures; the death anniversaries of many in my family, most specifically my parents; and the perceived closeness of the ancestors as the veils thin.
My talks with Gaia and our walks about her territory on a regular basis inspired me, terrified me, and reminded me that our Earth, our planet, is a precious gift that many, myself included, take for granted far too often.