Find Rest And Inspiration In the Darkest Time of Year
Recharge Your Heart Fire For The Coming Year
It’s been a long year full of ups and downs.
All I want to do is binge on Netflix.
Most days now, I don't even really care about life. It takes up too much energy.
Rest Isn’t In The Future
We have seen the same pattern over the years. By the time the new year comes, we are exhausted. We start the new year as tired as we left the last year. There doesn’t seem to be any time for a break.
Not to mention that the days are short and the nights are long.
I felt this coming towards the end of the year.
I am trying to get my writing to the next level. It had moved there, but I was so tired and frustrated I didn’t think I could sustain it.
I forced myself to keep going even though my heart wasn’t into it.
I know I don’t have much energy. I do the bare necessities, what is required daily, and then I drop myself into my Kindle for relief. It doesn't replenish anything.
Perception Of Darkest Time Of Year
Coming into the darkest time of the year should almost feel like coming to rest.
We run at such a fast pace. An endless amount on our to-do list for the year. We don't take much time to replenish ourselves.
I notice silence in my head. Not of the good kind. Nothing pulls me forward to keep moving.
My heart intelligence isn't there.
My heart intelligence is the driving force inside of me. My mind or ego can spin in every direction with every story I tell myself, which drags me all over the place.
My heart knows better.
Heart intelligence is the compass that sets me in the right direction. It keeps me focused on my priorities. The motivation keeps me writing when my brain has long given up.
Power Of Heart Fire
Heart Fire fuels Heart Intelligence.
You can feel it when you wake up in the morning and know exactly what has to happen today. It is focused and driven.
But Heart Intelligence is gentle. It isn't the driving force of the ego. The ego drives for recognition and safety.
Heart intelligence drives us because this is who we are.
We all have dreams. Dreams can be anything. They are the secret whispers that come from your heart intelligence. It feels like they almost come from your soul.
These are the whispers which we believe can't come true. There is no time or energy.
With your heart fire low, nothing can make them come true.
When The Heart Fire Is Low
I looked inside myself and saw that my heart fire was down to embers close to going out.
If the heart fire is low, fear takes over.
Fear takes a huge amount of energy to manage.
You are fighting the stories in your head. Your internal compass spins in circles with no clear direction.
It’s not impossible to energize your life, but it takes a huge influx of willpower to keep it going. By the end of the day, your willpower is gone.
Life stops, and you go to your default mode of rest. It can be sleeping, binge-watching on Netflix, or anything you feel gives you the rest. It doesn’t re-energize you.
It does give you rest, but it also leads to guilt because you are not accomplishing things you want to do. You have absolutely no energy to do them.
This starts a cycle where you beat yourself up or are honest with yourself and give up.
I know this cycle.
It is such a natural part of my thinking that I don’t question it until it gets too big. By then, I am so far into it that stopping it uses up precious reserves of energy that were low to begin with.
I got out of my rhythm, and I decided that the time had passed for all that I wanted to get done. I started procrastinating. I did the bare minimum needed to show up.
Longest Night and Growing Daylight Sparks Heart Fire
As the longest night passes, we know that the light will get stronger.
This encourages us to look at what would fuel our heart fire.
How the dark time of the year helps relight the heart fire:
The dark, such as night, encourage rest and reflection. This encourages us to look into ourselves and see what is there. Since it is a calm time, it is easier to see what is here.
You can’t see distractions in the dark. However, we can clearly see our heart fire. Even in the dark, our heart fire warms us and lets us know we are resilient.
Our heart fire is a beacon in the dark that leads us on. We have our own light to find our path.
This is a time of renewal and regeneration. We can align the heart fire to do the same as the days get longer. Renewal and regeneration keep us on our path, keeping us current.
With the renewal happening, we are building strength for the challenges ahead. Keeping the heart fire going builds faith and resiliency.
Not stuck in a time warp. We live in current times, not from years that are gone. You can let go of what no longer serves you.
I have a visualization that does this.
Visualization To Relight Heart Fire
It is a simple visualization and only takes a few minutes to do.
Here is how it starts.
Find a few minutes when it is quiet and you won’t be disturbed. Turn the phone off. Disconnect from everything.
Find as much darkness as you can. Sit in the darkness with a candle ready to light. Feel yourself relaxing. (Take a few minutes to make sure that you are as relaxed as you can be.)
Think about the prior year after being in the darkness for a while. What went well, what didn’t you like? Start with the things that you want to keep.
Imagine putting a pin in them and holding them to you. It can be anything—projects, people, or jobs—literally anything that you want to keep going into the coming year.
Now, think of all the things you want to eliminate.
Put them into an imaginary soap bubble and release it. See it being carried away. If the soap bubble doesn’t work, imagine what works for you.
You can imagine yourself burying it, giving it back to the earth. You can burn it on an imaginary fire. You can throw it into an ocean or a river. There is no shortage of ways you can release this. Just make sure that you release it. You don’t have to think about it anymore.
Bring yourself back to the darkness. Feel the peace of it. Give yourself permission to rest. You can relax knowing what your focus is going to be for the coming year.
When you are ready, put your hands on your heart and send your attention there. Feel your heart greet you back with love. Imagine the heart fire that is there. (What do you see? Are the embers burning? Is it out? Does it burn brightly?)
All the things you pinned now throw on the heart fire.
If the fire needs to be relit, imagine using these ideas or things that you want to do in the next year as kindling. Restart the fire.
Either way, imagine that the fire is starting to grow. Now light the candle.
This candle symbolizes the growing sunlight. Match your heart fire to the candle. Let the strength of the sun fuel your heart fire further.
The great thing about this now is that you can tend to the fire for the rest of the year.
Simply check in when you feel your energy is low or you want to rest from the world. Imagine you look at the heart fire and see how it is doing.
Do you need more kindling to get it burning brighter again? Do a mini-evaluation like before. Let go of things and what is left you want to keep, go throw on your heart fire.
With extra energy from the heart fire burning, it is easier to keep your motivation strong. You won’t need willpower to get through the day. You keep going because you have the energy and drive.
Post Visualization Gives Clear Compass Point
Revitalizing my heart fire gives me new energy. I am ready for the new calendar year, refreshed to keep my writing at a new level.
The longest nights of the year give us time to evaluate our life at the current point. You release what doesn’t work and use your current self to grow your heart fire.
Heart fire fuels heart intelligence. Heart intelligence gives you a compass for your vision. Vision gives you joy and freedom to follow your dreams.
Thank you!
Loved reading your article Linda 💕
So inspiring 💫