Heraclitus, a Greek Philosopher  (c. 535 BC – 475 BC) is quoted as having said said ‘change is the only constant in life’.  What that basically means is – nothing stays the same, and yet, many of us resist change.  We hang onto things, people or situations that we have either outgrown, are not good for us, or because we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, or maybe we worry about what others will say or think of us.   

Sometimes a change that we didn’t ask for is thrust upon us – like the current COVID-19 pandemic and we are thus forced to make changes to, and rearrange aspects of our lives to survive and cope with it.  This may have meant some of you having to adjust to working from home, some of you may be furloughed, or you may have lost your main source of income.  You may have been homeschooling, cooped up at home with family or isolated on your own.  Some of you may unfortunately have had to deal with and cope with the loss of loved ones.   

Some of you may now be saying that you can’t wait for life to return to normal.  But what exactly does that mean?  For the foreseeable future, we know that life will not go back to how it was before COVID-19.  We cannot deny that life for all of us has changed.  What will our new normal look like, what will YOUR new normal look like?

Making plans for post lockdown

At the time of writing this post whilst some of the restrictions we have had to endure are lifting, we are still in lockdown.  Whatever your circumstances,  and whilst you may be feeling some anxiety about the unknown – see this time as an opportunity to to look at your life, to re-evaluate and reflect on the things that no longer serve you, what do you want to change, what is important to you now and going forward.  

You might find it useful to compile an inventory of your current situation and look at the areas in your life that are no longer fulfilling you or are causing you unhappiness.  Some examples could be:-

• Contents of your wardrobe, bookshelf or food cupboard
• Material possessions 
• Your job/career (i.e. looking for a new role, working towards promotion, setting up your own business)
• Relationships/friendships that are draining you (or have become toxic)
• Your finances (i.e. subscriptions to magazines or the gym that you no longer need/use, looking at ways you can reduce expenditure on household shopping etc)
• Bad habits (i.e. spending too much time on social media when you need to be studying or working)
• Change of location (i.e. moving to a new town or country to be closer to family or move further away from family)
• Looking to retire from your stressful job

Releasing ritual

Burning has for many centuries been used as a ritual of release.  Why not try this exercise to help you release what no longer serves you.  If you have access to an open fire, great.  If not, a large flame proof bowl will do (and a lighter).

Take a blank sheet of paper and make a list of the things you would like to release or change in your life and then take a few deep breaths.  Out loud and with intention/from the heart tell your self what the list represents and why you need to let go, and then burn the list – as you burn it, express gratitude and say a prayer (to God, the angels, or whatever higher power you recognise).   Do be careful with this exercise – if burning is not practical or safe, shred the list, or bury it in your garden.

Celebrate the end of your releasing ritual with a glass of wine or cup of your favourite beverage.

Vision board

Another tool to use to help you gain clarity and reassess what is important to you and to help shape what you want your life to look like, is to create a vision board (which is a pictorial collage of your goals and aspirations).   If you need some guidance on how to create one – sign up for my newsletter at: www.visualiseandbloom.com.  Once you have confirmed subscription, you will be sent a link to download a pdf copy of my ‘create your own vision board’ guide.

Photo credit: Thomas de LUZE on Unsplash

Author – Valerie Lewis

Valerie is a Personal Growth Facilitator, Holistic Massage Therapist, Reiki Practitioner and a Creative Dabbler. Having gone through a significant life changing event in her mid-twenties – loss of her only child though traumatic circumstances, she is passionate about supporting and empowering people who are lost and confused with the direction they want to take following a life event that has significantly impacted them and their sense of self.  Visit her website Visualise and Bloom for more info.