Clearing the Way: Moving Forward into a New Year

summary
In this heartfelt episode of Growth from Grief, Susan Andersen reflects on the transition into a new year, offering guidance and comfort for those navigating this time—especially those grappling with loss. Through the metaphor of a quiet walking path, Susan explores the challenges and possibilities of stepping into the unknown.

✨ Key Takeaways:

• Navigating Transitions in Grief: The shift from one year to the next can feel heavy, particularly for those mourning a loss. Susan reassures listeners that moving forward doesn’t mean leaving loved ones behind; their presence remains in memories, love, and lessons.
• Carrying Forward with Intention: Choose what serves you best in this new chapter—whether it's compassion, healing practices, or shedding self-blame and guilt.
• Finding Courage in Uncertainty: Small, brave steps can lead to healing, even when the path ahead is unclear.
• A Guided Visualization: Susan leads listeners through a calming exercise, inviting them to imagine releasing what no longer serves them and embracing the possibilities of the year ahead.

🌟 "You don’t have to see the entire path to take the first step. Courage is within you."

🎧 Tune in now for reflection, gentle guidance, and practical tools to bring hope and possibility into the new year.

Thank you for listening! Visit www.sueandersenyoga.com for Yoga for Grief classes and additional resources.

Transcript

Susan Andersen (00:03.382)
Hello, I'm Sue Andersen, grief guide and yoga teacher dedicated to helping individuals navigate the challenging journey of loss. Welcome to Growth from Grief, where I aim to offer strategies to transition from the depths of grief to the path of healing. Whatever loss you are grappling with, here you'll discover support
to ease both the physical and emotional burdens of grief. Together, let's embark on a journey towards strength, peace, and healing. I'm so glad you are here.

Susan Andersen (00:52.365)
Hi and welcome to today's episode, the first for 2025. Welcome to the new year. If you're listening to this in real time. I'm your host Sue Andersen. And today I want to share with you some thoughts about the new year and specifically about maybe
a path to the new year. 

You know, this can feel like a transition to people; we're sort of conditioned to think about January 1st as that day that we're going to start doing something, right? We've got these resolutions, we've got these plans, we're going to move forward, we're going to do this. And, yes, it's true, but in reality, I mean, it really isn't, you know, it's just another day, if you will. But we, I don't know how it started in terms of, I'm going to think about it as, you know, a new start. But I certainly do that as well. I kind of think about it as a new start. 

However, I also think about September as a new start because for me when I was in school I always thought about that as sort of the beginning of the year. But for those who are grieving, grieving a loss, this transition from one year to the next can be really difficult, especially if 2024 was the year of your loss. And maybe it was early in 2024, so now you're coming to that one year mark. And it's, it's that difficult time, right? It's that one year mark. And you are dreading it, perhaps. 

Susan Andersen (03:12.286)
But also,even if it's not the first year of your loss, moving from year to year can also feel like we're leaving something behind. We're leaving that person behind. We're leaving that loss behind.

And in fact, it's really not true, especially with grieving the loss of a person, because that person's spirit is with you. You're not leaving them behind and you're not going to forget them. They're with you. They're with you. You're not forgetting them at all. But it is a difficult time, is another transition in our lives.

This week I had the great opportunity because our weather here has been very nice to walk Queenie in this really nice path in my neighborhood. This path used to be an old railroad track and the people who own the property allow dog walkers to use it. It's a wide path and it's nice and clear. So think about the fact that you're able to be on this path that's very clear. There's some dried leaves, right? So there's leaves all over the place on the path, sort of a nice soft cushion. There are some pine trees. There are a lot of trees, deciduous trees that shed their leaves, maples and oaks. So you have this wide path and lined on either side with trees.

Susan Andersen (05:18.412)
And it's just a lovely, lovely path to go on. And there isn't really a lot of activity. One time we did see a deer - kind of stared at each other. It was really beautiful. It was in the distance. It wasn't very close. And there is a house, but again, it's kind of nestled in there. So you don't really see a lot of people. So it's just beautiful. It's a beautiful path to walk on. 

One of the other things about this particular path is that when Queenie and I walk on this path, we don't go the entire distance. She likes to investigate and smell. She's not really a good walker that just wants to walk. She likes a lot of sniffing. She likes to find things to eat. She is a beagle, a basset mix, and her favorite pleasure is sniffing out things to eat.

So consequently, we don't really go very far. But when I look forward on this path, I can see just that sort of open sky at the end, just this beautiful stretch of trail, but I can't see the end of the trail. And I've never been down the end of the trail. Certainly other neighbors have. I just haven't been down the end of the trail. 

You know, yesterday when we were walking, I was really thinking about that idea of the path into the new year. So that's the inspiration for this episode.

Susan Andersen (07:21.778)
You know, one of the things that you can imagine when you're just walking down a path like I was describing that you can't see the end, you know, there's, there's a lot of possibilities. So if you're walking this path at night, you can't really see anything at the end. Get a little bit apprehensive. You know, what animal am I going to come up against?

What is that creaking noise? Those sorts of things. And I certainly walk her at dusk, not when it's completely dark. But still, it's still a little bit murky, right? So you can't see the end. And also, sometimes, you want to know what's at the end, you want to be prepared. We can't always know the end, right? So when I think about a new year, I think about the fact that... I have some plans, generally for the first few months. There's things that I want to do personally, maybe there's some trips we want to take. 

Susan Andersen (08:55.059)
There's some...yoga programs I want to offer at the beginning of the year. And generally, even when I was working in corporate, the really detailed planning was really the Q1 and Q2 detailed planning, Q1 being the most detailed. And then after that, some kind of ideas of things, because you just did not know, you couldn't see that far into the future.

When I think about this idea of moving into a new year, I may have this clarity, I may feel hopeful about what I want to do in January, February, maybe even a little bit into March. You know, and I feel hopeful that I will be able to accomplish certain things. For me this year, for example, I want to focus on learning.

Learning is more important to me and not learning so I can teach something. So as a yoga teacher, I go to trainings so I can enhance what I'm offering to my students. And that's very fulfilling and I love to do that but I feel like I'm missing something. There's a dimension of learning that I'm missing. So that's gonna be important for me this year. So I have that sort of clear plan.

But, you know, for you, maybe you don't have this clear plan for the first couple of months. Maybe it just seems daunting or filled with sadness. You know, maybe you want to set an intention, but you just can't find the energy.

Susan Andersen (11:05.343)
You can't even imagine that you're going to have the energy to do whatever it is, you know, that exercise plan. Or even if it's just moving into a new job or maybe you have to change where you're living, there's something, you know, that's that's a little daunting. This year. You know there's a longing for change. 

And when you're grieving, maybe you're hoping that the heaviness of grief will begin to lift and, and that you might find something that resembles normalcy for you, that maybe that's the way you're feeling.

Others, you know, maybe they're just too sad. They're, they're stuck. They're feeling a lot of pain. And if this is you, and all you might see is starkness and weightiness. You know, the weight of what you're carrying. It might be hard to think about moving forward. You may want to just go back before this thing happened to you. And that's a challenge, right? That's a challenge.

Susan Andersen (12:47.399)
It's often the case that when we are in this transition, that your experience is exactly where you should be. No, it's not going to be the same as mine, the same as someone else's. And especially again, if you are grieving, grief is deeply personal and it's nonlinear. There's no straight path.

You know, I talked about that path that I walk with Queenie. I have no idea if it turns or curves or goes up a hill or down a hill because I can't see that far. So I don't know what I'm up against, right? So, you know, we may feel that sometimes it might seem like the future is obscured. But one thing that I do know is that possibilities exist beyond what we can see.

Susan Andersen (14:10.825)
I'd like to offer you three truths to carry into the new year. The first one is choosing what you want to carry forward. This is really eye-opening. Spend some time just reflecting on what no longer serves you. Maybe it's guilt, self-blame, maybe it's stuff. Maybe you've got a lot of stuff and you just need to shed it.

So what are you going to leave behind because it no longer serves you?

Susan Andersen (15:04.893)
And as you leave things like guilt or self-blame, maybe you vow to move forward being more compassionate with yourself, kinder, finding some healing practices that are helpful to you.

So think about what you want to carry forward. Choose what's going to help you best in the new year.

I mentioned earlier that if 2024 is the year of your loss, the person you lost, especially if it's a person, I just want to again reassure you that moving to this next year doesn't mean you're forgetting or leaving behind your loved one.

Susan Andersen (16:18.219)
You know, our loved ones remain with us. They are here in our memories, in our love. Maybe even in advice or lessons that they taught us. So we're not leaving anyone behind.

The other thing that, or the third thing that I want to leave with you is courage is within you. It's hard to move forward sometimes. It's hard. Sometimes we're facing the unknown, a new job, a new place to live. Life without someone. Life without our pet. We're moving forward. And it takes one to be brave to do that, right? To face each day.  Just even taking small steps, sometimes especially in that first year of grief, first few years, it really, really takes courage to take these small steps and move forward.

Susan Andersen (18:03.643)
So I really would like you to think about your courage. When you feel fear or doubt rise up. Know that there is this seed of courage inside of you. It's there. It's there. Breathe into it. Acknowledge it. Find it within you. You will.

Susan Andersen (18:49.031)
Try a breathing exercise if you're feeling anxious or stressed or stuck.  Go back and concentrate on your breath. Deep breath in, nice slow exhale out. Long exhales, long exhales. Help us release, reduce anxiety, stress, fear. Tap into those long exhales. Nice, deep inhale. Nice, long exhale.

Susan Andersen (19:43.374)
And just notice that little seed, that little seed of courage. It's helpful to me. I found this really helpful when I first started doing this a few years ago. I actually felt it very helpful. To imagine seeds were inside of me, so I was, you know, imagining these little seeds, like sort of like little bubbles that were inside of me and I could encourage them with my breath to rise up. And I really like that image. So try that, try that breath.

Susan Andersen (20:39.462)
Here's another little thing to try, a little guided visualization. And if you're listening to this when you're driving, you might want to pause and listen to this visualization when you're able to close your eyes.

Susan Andersen (21:09.062)
Let's imagine as we sit in a comfortable seated position, eyes gently closed, feet on the ground. So I really feel, really feel that connection to the earth. Take a nice deep breath in. Exhale, long, long exhale.
Imagine yourself on a path.
Maybe you're in the woods.
Maybe you are on a path that leads to a river, the ocean, a lake on that path.

See yourself walking and in your hand is a small light bag.
Take a nice deep inhale and exhale.

Consider what you will take in this bag as you move into this new year. What will come with you.
What will be left behind?

Maybe as you start your journey on this path, the bag is a little heavy and slowly you release that which no longer serves you until you have this light bag.

And as you move forward on your path, let your eyes gaze towards the horizon. Not knowing what's beyond what you can see. It's not clear what you will find in this new year.

Take a nice deep breath.
Your bag is nice and light.
You look forward.
And as you once again gaze at the horizon.
You imagine a place of possibility.
Feeling a little lighter as you move forward into this new year.

Take a moment to move a little bit. Maybe open your eyes if they were closed.

Susan Andersen (25:09.922)
As we close today's episode, just a reminder that you don't have to see the entire path into this new year to take the first step.

Remember to choose what you want to carry forward and know that if you are grieving loss of a loved one, that they remain part of you. You carry them forward with your memories, your love, and the lessons they taught you. And know as you continue into this new year, the courage is within you.

Susan Andersen (26:11.342)
Thank you for joining in this podcast today. Thank you for joining me on this journey.
I encourage you to check out my website, suandersonyoga.com for some upcoming classes on Zoom and in person for Yoga for Grief.

I wish you peace, strength, and a sense of possibility as you move into this new year.
Know that you are not alone as you take gentle steps forward.

I'll see you in the next episode.