I like my life

Hope springs eternal in the human breast; Man never is, but always to be blest. — Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man, 1733

For last year's words belong to last year's language And next year's words await another voice. — T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, 1941

My word for 2023 is Possibility.1 It is the word that rose to consciousness, when on my 6 am morning walk I observed a house spilling its new year's eve party of 20-30 people into the not-quite-dawn, each one filled with joy, camaraderie and wondrous anticipation, and it is the word that persists as I look on the faces of those I encounter in the city this morning. Possibility is seeded by hope, and the 1st January is without doubt the most hopeful day of the year. It is the day when we can wash our hands of the transgressions, mistakes, laziness and path-straying of the past year and begin anew. More than any priest-crafted confession, this is a day of blessing, forgiveness and redemption, available to each one of us, regardless of religious persuasion or spiritual practice, and rising high above atheistic or rationalised logic. Today, despite the world falling apart around us, and all the evidence pointing to despair, we are happy, we are free, and we are blessed.

The human spirit is a beautiful thing, alone so easily crushed, beaten and humiliated, collectively so strong, so resilient, so gloriously naïve. On New Year's Day, strangers greet strangers, with a simple "Happy New Year" and a smile, each greeting tightening the bonds that hold us together. Christmas doesn't seem to create that same camaraderie, as we rush to complete preparations, looking inward, worrying about self and inner family, fretting about obligations to colleagues and relations we often don't even like. When, finally, it is all over, we can heave a collective sigh, readjust ourselves over the following more peaceful days and prepare for a new start. New Year's Day comes with a good few days of preparation, and anticipation: we are ready; let's do it differently this time.

Looking back

Focussing on the word Awake in 2022 resulted in me reducing my workload, especially my admin/marketing overload, and spending more time on my home and with my family. Perhaps more importantly desiring to be awake saw me committing to recovery from my year-long pain-killer addiction, and then going on to take care of my damaged leg through physiotherapy instead of drugs, and my whole body through taking up yoga (after a 4 year gap) and ballet (after a 40 year gap). And just yesterday, the last day of Awake, I was guided, by my friend and colleague, Naomi, through a technique known as the Reality Generator, a Human Givens2 method where light hypnosis and guided mediation are used to break undesired behaviour patterns and re/imagine a desired way of being. For me it was to start my mornings differently, i.e. not with sitting down, opening my computer and working, but with walking, stretching, yoga and prayer. So far was I from that ideal, so stuck in my computer pattern that I was unable to do this without help, without an awakening moment—which with elegant irony was achieved by a simulation of sleep and accessing of the dream state. This morning saw the first fruits of Naomi's gift.

My family and I had a difficult Christmas, with Rayna being struck down with flu from the 21st all the way through until yesterday, and the children following, Asrai on the 26th and Zoë on the 27th. Happily I stayed well, and was able to hold things together for the duration. While my family slept, I stayed awake. Hopefully that period is behind us now, and we all enter 2023 with rising health and hope. I count my blessings, which are many, and embrace my life with a glad heart. There is always something to look forward to, always a new possibility, a new surprise. Like this: I came out this morning to sit in a cafe in Sheffield's Peace Gardens, to write this, and absorb the expectant energy of the other coffee-drinkers and pastry-eaters in this multi-ethnic, patchwork city we call home. The trams weren't running, so I had an unexpected 40-minute walk, arriving at this warm cafe suitably cold and hungry. A small, but satisfying experience.

Looking forward

Despite beginning with hope, January, the coldest month, can sometimes freeze us into stagnation, and lethargy or depression may set in. To make the most of January, perhaps consider yourself a graden...

January is the quietest month in the garden. But just because it looks quiet doesn't mean that nothing is happening. The soil, open to the sky, absorbs the pure rainfall while microorganisms convert tilled-under fodder into usable nutrients for the next crop of plants. The feasting earthworms tunnel along, aerating the soil and preparing it to welcome the seeds and bare roots to come. — Rosalie Muller Wright, The Daily Gardener, 2020

So, embrace your inner earthworm, and enjoy a month of new possibilities.
Tobias

1 My word of the year for 2022 was Awake, for 2021 Moment, for 2020 Less and for 2019 Big. It's good to have a word to focus on for the year. I thank my friend Surya for the idea.
2 Read more: What are the human givens?

Winter & Spring Things

  1. In-person CSM workshops are happening again, just once a month in London, so please spread the word. The first one takes place on 11th-12th January, in Whitechapel. Please spread the word!
  2. The Advanced CSM program will be offered even less often—just once a year in May.
  3. The Scrum Exchange. This is a twice-yearly event in London. The next one is scheduled for 26th May 2023. Register early for the reduced-price Trailblazer tickets. The event is free for those travelling from outside England.
  4. December saw the completion of my KJV 365 audio recordings. You can listen here to James, Peter, John, Jude and Revelation. If you're interested in how I relate scripture to work, politics, education and mental health check out the tagged collections on the contents page. You may be surprised. In 2023 I'll be enhancing the reflections with imagery, including well-known paintings, random internet images, photographs and drawings of my own, and perhaps artwork sent to me by readers—that's you, so get in touch if you would like to express your inner artist.
  5. I'm always interested in your questions and thoughts, so Ask Me Anything and I'll respond.
  6. And finally, please check out The London Scrum Academy, my recently created home for all things scrum: workshops, certifications, articles, videos, books, and more to come...

—

If you'd like to receive my monthly newsletter by email click here to subscribe.

1st January 2023, 11 am