Happy New Year!
Confused because it’s not Jan. 1st? Well, yes that is the traditional Gregorian calendar date for a new year but for me Sept. 1st is a much better date to celebrate.
Let me first start by saying that yesterday was my birthday and being my birthday and being the 31st of the month, similar to Dec. 31th or New Years eve, I celebrated the successful completion of the previous year and the hopes for a new year, healthy, alive and kicking on this earth.
Being a Virgo, this time of year is the start of the astrological year for my birth sign so it always feels like a renewal of energy for me anyhow.
Most folks have to admit that as children, even though we mourned the end of summer and the freedom of lazy days and outdoor fun, there was always that special excitement when you got your new schools supplies. Those newly sharpened pencils, crisp edged, pristine white paged scribblers and ahhhh, the smell of a freshly cracked jar of paste. It gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.
September is a time to buckle down and get learning again. Even if it is just re-acquainting yourself again with your job after an extended vacation. Let’s not forget the resumption of your favourite social group. Many hobby and recreation groups begin again in September after a summer hiatus.
Today, in Canada it is Labour Day, a day to celebrate our hard working labour force of people who built this amazing country. The traditional way to celebrate this holiday is with a barbeque or a picnic. The last long weekend of the summer. One final hurrah before the harvest begin in earnest on the farms, one last chance to get to the beach before cooler weather sets in or just one last chance to kick back and chill out on the sundeck with a beer before the cycle of life shifts and autumn and all her colour splendor draws our attention to her beauty.
As much as I love the allure of the colours of autumn, I also know that behind those gracefully falling leaves is a cold bitter wind that serves a reminder of her harsher lessons. Did you waste away your summer or did you make hay while the sun shined brightly, for you can only reap what you have sown and so September gives us that one last chance to get it together and gather what we need to take us through the impending cold dark winter.
September says, “I give you this boon, a fresh start. Use my final burst of energy to stimulate your creative juices.”
This is my mental New Year’s day. After a wonderfully laid back summer finished off with birthday celebrations I always feel refreshed and ready to take on the world on September 1st. I have always found it easier to make plans and commit to new goals at this time of the year rather than January with all her potentially failed resolutions.
Today, like New Years’ day it is a holiday. Tomorrow a new cycle starts for me and I am brimming full of energy and inspired ideas. If you feel as I do then I wish you a Happy New Year as well. For everyone else, well you’ll just have to wait a couple of months.
