I have been thinking a lot about New Beginnings.
I am a big fan of Clean Slates, Fresh Starts, and New Beginnings.
Mondays provide this feeling on a weekly basis, and I awaken every week with a sense of renewed vigor to pay special attention to my schedule.
The first day of any month offers another chance to get things right, and the next 30 days are the perfect opportunity to challenge myself to grow.
Seasons, too, arrive with their own clear agendas.
We currently perch at the precipice of New Beginnings:
- Gretchen Rubin {} of The Happiness Project likens September to another January, in that everything gets back on track as children head off to school.
That is certainly true for my household! New wardrobes in preparation for the cold weather, new school supplies for the impending educational months, and new appointments of which to keep track as sports, clubs, and extracurricular activities wind up. Even though we are homeschooling this year, there are still many events on my schedule — probably more now than when Abbie was in a brick-&-mortar school!
- Planners and agenda books capitalize on this concept as many start in August as opposed to January, placing the actual New Year halfway through the calendar.
This is my current planner. It’s simple and fun, and it only cost $3 at Big Lots.
I used to hate schedulers that began mid-year. The first day of the year is January, damnit! But as I have gotten older I have likewise learned to appreciate their purpose. Now I switch out my agenda book for a new one every six months — a new one in January, and a new one in the Fall. I love the fancy-pants pretty ones but I’m too broke to spend money on such frivolities, so I typically get mine for a dollar from the discount bin.
- The fiscal year starts in the Fall.
This doesn’t impact me in any way whatsoever. I just find it interesting to include here.
- The Islamic New Year usually begins in October, with the first sighting of the new Moon crescent in Autumn.
- The Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah, Hebrew for “Head of the Year,” is celebrated in Autumn, too.
- Pagans &/or Wiccans recognize the onset of the Fall season as the beginning of a new cycle on the Wheel of the Year – not necessarily the start of a New Year, but at the very least a celebration New Beginnings.
Okay, but wow. I love the spiritual idea behind the year beginning as the natural world prepares to rest. Spring — the time of birth and greenery — has long faded into the dry, hot months of summer, which itself has moved on into the season of harvest. In olden times, we would spend the next several weeks stocking up for the winter; this would be the final push before SHIT GETS REAL.
- Round 4 of A Round of Words in 80 Days () begins the first Monday of October.
Because speaking in terms of WEEKS as opposed to DAYS (like with #ROW80) is The Next Big Thing. But 84 > 80 so I remain unconvinced.
{On a similar, but unrelated note, I have added The 12 Week Year, by Brian P. Moran, to my TBR list. 12 weeks (*times*) 7 days per week = 84 days. Clearly not a new concept but definitely complimentary to #ROW80.}
- Finally, many writers get a kick-start in November by participating in National Novel Writing Month ().
Today is the first day of Fall.
For some, a New Year.
For me, New Beginnings.
Day 1.
Where do we go from here?
Answer: Where ever we want.
The sky is no longer the limit. The world is ours. All we have to do is take that first step. Today is the day we push free our chains of melancholy and dance into tomorrow.
Shake a tail feather, baby.
What does the beginning of the Autumnal season mean to you?
How do you plan to celebrate the coming months of harvest?
Do you have dreams and goals to set forth or reassess?
Will you take this opportunity to write an Action Plan?
Are you going to set things in motion?
Happy New Beginnings, y’all!
