29 - End of Year Reflection

In this episode, I’m taking a moment to pause, reflect, and speak honestly about the year that’s been.

I share some of the lessons this year has taught me about living in my truth, checking myself when I drift out of alignment, and what it really means to speak from the heart — even when that truth isn’t always easy for others to hear.

We talk about the spiritual significance of closing a 9 year, the deep, transformative medicine of the Year of the Snake, and what stepping into 2026 — the Year of the Horse — invites us into: movement, freedom, courage, and living more authentically.

I also want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has supported my work this year — whether that’s through listening, liking, sharing, attending events, or investing in sessions. None of it goes unnoticed.

We’ll touch on what’s coming next too — festivals, fairs, retreats, an award ceremony, and some fun new offerings waiting in the wings — and I invite you to gently reflect on what you’ve achieved this year, even if that feels hard to see.

Edited and produced by Mike at Making Digital Real

Transcript

In this episode I take some quiet time to reflect on the year that's been, the lessons, the shedding and the moments of realignment that have shaped me both personally and spiritually. I also touch on what's coming next, the festivals, the fairs, the retreats and the new awards ceremony and some fun new services still under wraps. Join me for a fun episode and have a very merry Christmas.

I just wanted to sit down and record something a little longer today so it's not rushed, not polished, just honest. So this year has stretched me a little bit, it's taught me, this year's humbled me and it's strengthened me in ways that I didn't expect. And before I go anywhere else I just want to say thank you. 

Thank you to you if you have liked any of my posts, if you've shared something that I've posted, if you've just listened quietly to the podcast and enjoyed it, if you've booked a session with me, come to one of the fairs, any of my retreats, you know, or you've just spent some of your hard-earned money supporting my work, I thoroughly, thoroughly appreciate. None of that is small to me and I see it and I'm deeply grateful for it. So thank you very, very much.

So one of the biggest lessons this year has been about my own truth. I've learned to check myself when I'm not fully in alignment, when I'm saying yes out of habit or shrinking to keep the peace or ignoring that quite a little in a nudge that says this really don't feel right. I've also realised something important about how I move through the world.

I don't avoid the truth, I never have and I don't really avoid confrontation either, but I do always come from the heart space. Something that means, sometimes that means I've said things that people weren't ready to hear, I've probably stood on a few toes along the way, I know I have. Not because I want to challenge or for the sake of it, but because being truthful matters more to me than being liked and the truth is not everyone stays when you speak from that place. 

Some people fall away with your truth, well when your truth doesn't match where they are at that time and that's okay. It's painful at times, yes, but it is okay. What I've learned is this, speaking your truth with integrity is an act of self-respect.

Silence might keep things comfortable but it never ever keeps them honest and when I've drifted out of alignment, life has a way of nudging me back. Sometimes it's gently, sometimes it's with a real firm shove, reminding me that you know I am who I am and how I choose to walk should always be the forefront of my life. Now I truly couldn't be doing any of the work I'm doing without the community that surrounds me and we are a community of fantastic souls. 

There's not one of you that I haven't shared time with or shared a moment with or thought you know what, that person has shown up for me a little bit. So whether you're someone who quietly listens, someone who comments on every post or someone who shows up in person, you know you really matter to me. So support doesn't always look loud, it's not about who's saying yes I'll do this and yes I'll do that, sometimes it's just presence and thank you for trusting me, for growing alongside me. 

I feel like I've massively grown this year and I've grown with you and for allowing me to work and this work to keep on evolving, I'm very very grateful. Now spiritually we've been moving through some very powerful cycles this year, we're closing our number nine year which is actually the year my life path year, it's a year of completion, of endings, of shedding skins and letting go of what no longer fits. If things have fallen apart, dissolved or asked you to release old versions of yourself, that's not failure at all, that is completion, you have completed your cycle.

We're also closing the year of the snake and the snake energy is slow, it's deep and it's often very uncomfortable, it asks us to shed identities, relationships, beliefs and patterns that are no longer in alignment for ourselves. The snake doesn't transform loudly, it retreats, it softens and it sheds very very privately, so if this year has felt introspective, emotionally demanding or like you've been quietly outgrowing things that you used to, wouldn't think that you might carry forever, that there is snake medicine. As we move into 2026, the year of the horse, the energy shifts dramatically, massively shifting, the horse energy is about movement, freedom, courage and truth. 

Where the snake asks us to shed, the horse asks us to move, it takes us, it takes up space, it travels lighter, it's about living more honestly. 2026 isn't about pushing harder, it's about alignment, aligned forward movement, it's about choosing momentum that feels true rather than movement driven by fear or expectation. This is the year that rewards authenticity, integrity and a brave heart.

Now as I move into 2026, I have a full year ahead and there's so much to look forward to, I'm ready for this year with open arms, I'm ready to see what it wants to show me, I'm ready to learn and I'm thoroughly ready to expand. So we've got the festivals, well the festival, the first spirit fest is coming, we have the fairs, we've got two retreats next year, there could be a cheeky third if we just see how it all goes. We've got an awards ceremony, that's the first one of next year, well the first one that I'm going to be doing next year.

We've got spaces to gather, we've got learning, we've got laughter and we've got connection to have next year. There's also some new services that I am bringing, they are on their way, not quite ready to be revealed yet but I can promise the fun, expansive and deeply aligned with where this work is heading. So everything that's coming is rooted in community, accessibility and truth, not ego, not hearsay and not fear. 

I refuse fear in spiritual work. So just before I finish, I want to invite you to reflect, not just on what you didn't do because we're very good at doing that, but I want you to reflect on what you survived, what you learned and how you kept going. Reflection doesn't come easily to me either, I struggle to see my own achievements sometimes, but I'm making a conscious decision to reflect more intentionally as we move through 26, to honour growth as it happens, not just once it's finished. 

So as I'm growing I have set my stall that actually I'm going to reflect as I'm going through things. So wherever you are right now, you might be tired, hopeful, uncertain, excited, you're doing better than what you think. So thank you for walking this year with me, thank you for trusting the process and thank you for being here. 

I hope you have the best Christmas, an amazing new year and I will see you in the next chapter. Thank you so much for listening to me, Stacey Bower on Guide to Spirituality podcast. If you enjoyed this chat, feel free to follow, share or leave a review, it really helps. 

Take what resonates, leave what doesn't and keep showing up for you. See you next time.