I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead !           Philippians 3:13

I grew up in the Midwest but for the last 21 years my home has been on the gulf coast of Florida.  As I recall my life growing up, the Labor Day holiday was marked by public swimming pools closing, going back to school, putting away any clothing that was white and saying goodbye to summer!

My experience in Florida has been a little different. Swimming pools remain open all year long, school resumes in August before Labor Day, wearing white is totally acceptable anytime of the year, and our weather allows us to remain in summer always!

One common thread I do find is that Labor Day marks a season when we suddenly realize only a few months of this year remain.  The holidays will soon be upon us and the start of another new year will soon be here!

You may be saying right now,” Good because 2020 has been one tough and strange year and the thought of it ending soon seems glorious!”  What if though…..you could look back at the year of 2020 with some positivity…. a year of growth, reflection and opportunity?

Think Back

Remember last January when you were looking forward to starting this new decade and you had ideas, dreams, and desires for what it would look like? And then the pandemic hit and for the next several months you and I, and the rest of the world  experienced uncontrollable change in our lives. Changes that have left some of us isolated, without work, without a social life, living in fear of infection, and often feeling cut off from the world we once knew.

There is Another Side 

I invite you today to breathe in and recognize whatever circumstances you are in today.  Now I invite you to exhale the notion that you must remain stuck, stalled out, or living a life less than you desire!

Imagine for a moment that it’s December 31, 2020 and you get the opportunity to go back in time and change anything from September 2020 forward.  As you look back what do you wish you would have done?  What goals do you wish you would have reached? What new adventures would you have started? What habits do you wish you would have tossed?  Who is one person you wished you would have reconnected with?  Do you wish you would have created more time for a daily routine that brings joy and fulfillment?

Now is the Time

Take a closer look at your life! What’s going on and what are you needing right now? As you answer each question consider in your life…. all persons, places, things, experience, thoughts, feeling, and foods. (Adapted from The Daniel Plan 2013)

1. List everything in your life that:

Gives you Energy
Drains your Energy

2.  What in your life is slowing you down?

3.   What brings you joy and helps you thrive?

4.   What habits are encouraging you?

5.   What habits are getting in the way?

Interested in taking even a closer look at your life?  Take my free Life Sketch Assessment

I believe it is possible to live a full and thriving life no matter what is going on around you!

Remember, your life always matters!

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