Welcome; I hope this post finds you well. It’s cold in Bristol; for the first time this year, we are experiencing frosty mornings. I sit under a pile of blankets, with a cup of hot chocolate in my hand, tidying up all my private and work areas. Working on a book chapter took all my energy, so I did not do my usual end-of-year organising. I am doing it now, a few weeks later. I am not even acting yet, just taking stock – in the garden, in the pantry, in our offices and in our calendars. Being relatively organised pays off, so I can see I am not far behind and things work smoothly.
If the usual New Year rush did reach you, I hope things are finally slowing down for you. This month, I encourage you to slow down even more. I do not mean this in the actual sense of pacing – we all have our rhythms: some of us prefer a faster pace, others move slowly, while if you are like me, the pacing tends to pulsate: slow down and then speed up a little.
Welcome to 2024. Welcome back. This post is (a backdated) the beginning of a new phase of my liberation psychologies Almanac project. The first phase was centred around the Celtic calendar. However, I have now decided to return to my Slavic roots and work with the January to December frame. I will honour the Celtic Wheel of the Year. I will also weave in Nature cycles from other cultures. Liberation psychologies celebrate diversity of views, and I work as an integrated practitioner, so it makes sense to me to invite a wide range of perspectives here. Last year, I followed my local Nature here in the UK, so I will continue with the focus on the Northern Hemisphere. However, in many cultures, January is the time to set intentions for the year ahead, so I am reflecting on this space, too.