Here we are, after solstice and the holidays, and just into the new year… I love this time as an opportunity to reflect and settle — looking back, looking forward, and still, being right here, now; relishing the long, cozy evenings, taking time for tea and quiet. I hope this time has been rewarding and pleasurable for you too.

Apropos new beginnings: I was cycling along recently and it occurred to me while the title of my book, Becoming: Journeying Toward Authenticity, describes what the book has meant for me, it doesn’t really do a good job of communicating what I hope the volume can do for its readers. As I rolled along, the phrase Maximize Memorable Moments occurred to me! Three big Ms!

So what do I mean by this? Each essay addresses a ‘memorable moment’ in my life: some of them were ones that hurt (e.g. The Road to Hell, page 156), or that startled or jolted me in some way (Treasure Trove, page 78), or that opened doors (Look Where You Want to Go, page 112), either in that very moment or in the days and years to come, or that rained down on my life like fireworks (Being Alone, page 31)!

That’s two Ems. Memorable Moments. Big ones. Ones that made a lasting impression.

But we all have an abundance of moments that hurt, surprise, jolt us, and they aren’t always ones we even want to remember, let alone ‘maximize.’ So what about that third M?

By Maximize, I mean take the full value from, digest, metabolize, yes, even celebrate! In writing Becoming, the process of recalling these memorable moments, plus the rethinking that was needed to articulate them, meant that each one took on deeper meaning, became richer and gained dimensions compared to being just moments in my life, even memorable ones.

And that is what I wish for us as we move toward into the new year, a new decade: that you may recognize moments in your life as memorable: reading with a grandchild, being hurt or ignored by someone you value, noticing the glint of a sunbeam on a tree or the mountains…

Let us take the time, bring the presence and awareness to rec0gnize these moments, and bring consciousness to them so they may enrich us, and recognize the learning, the teaching they offer.

May they make us more alive, full of life! A major bonus, of course, is that by doing this, we contribute to the evolution of consciousness, ours and that of the cosmos!

Happy New Year, and blessings to you and yours!