On the Threshold of a New Calendar Year
Plus “Year Ahead Tarot Spread” & Daily Practice for Connecting to Place
I’ve been waking up to fog and mist most mornings this past week. Some mornings the fog is so dense I can barely make out the path on the far side of the pond. It feels liminal, in-between, neither here nor there. Even though the calendar page has flipped from 2023 to 2024, we are still in the magical “time out of time,” the Twelve Days (or Thirteen Nights, if you prefer).
My friend Waverly Fitzgerald, calendar priestess that she was, wrote this in her book Celebrating Midwinter:
The idea of twelve significant days is an ancient one… The notion that these are days outside of ordinary time shows up in many cultures. In Scotland, no court had power during the twelve days. The Irish believed that anyone who died during these days escaped purgatory and went straight to Heaven. . . In medieval England, work was forbidden. . . In Germany, it was said that no wheels could turn during this time (no milling, no spinning, no carts) and the goddess Holle would punish women she found disobeying.
It seems clear that this is a magical period, a time out of time, whatever dates you choose. It is a special time, existing outside of the usual rules, when work is forbidden and all routines should be turned upside down.
This liminal time technically ends on January 6th with Twelfth Night / Epiphany. (I love the idea of completing with a revelation, an epiphany!) But my sense is that the beginning and ending are much more pliable than that.
The dominant culture advises us to rush into self-improvement — “new year, new you” — but really, it is still Midwinter. Our animal bodies still crave rest and sleep. Let’s step lightly into the new calendar year.
I find myself firmly in the camp of those who gave up making New Year’s resolutions long ago. I make yearly plans for my professional life in the fall. I still set personal intentions for the coming year during the 12 Days / 13 Nights. This year I whittled down my personal intentions to just one: becoming healthier and stronger every day. All the other intentions I might be tempted to add have gone onto a “might-do” list. No pressure! Meanwhile, my walks are just a little bit longer every day.
My friend Jennifer Lucero-Earle shared a lovely practice from one of her mentors, Indu Arora, who posted the following on her Instagram feed. Instead of wishing folks a “Happy New Year,” try one of these:
I wish you …
a stable year if you feel stirred
a peaceful year if you feel overwhelmed
a content year if you feel unsettled
a healthy year if you are dealing with sickness
a liberated year, if you feel tied up
a creative year, if you feel stagnant
a courageous year, if you feel weak
an inspiring year, if you feel demotivated
an empowering year, if you feel helpless
an abundant year, if you feel lack.
Keep going, write your own, and share on Indu Arora’s post if you like.
Thank you Indu and Jennifer!
Year Ahead Tarot Spread
This spread is a golden oldie to be sure. I first published it in the Gaian Tarot companion book back in 2010, and I share it on social media every couple of years. It has served me well over the years, and I’ve heard it’s a favorite of many folks. I invite you to give it a try.
Remember to revisit the reading every few months throughout the year to see how the themes that emerge are unfolding in your life. I like to make a note on my calendar to revisit the reading each quarter, and then do a little journaling.
1. What do I leave behind in the Old Year?
2. What do I open up to in the New Year?
3. Key Opportunity of the New Year
4. Key Challenge of the New Year
5. Hidden concern (pull from bottom of the deck)
6. Deep Wisdom / Advice from God/dess (pull from middle of the deck)
7. Key Theme of the New Year
If you keep records of your readings, the last card (#7) could become the first card (#1) in next year’s spread.
If you have any questions about your reading or just want to share it, please post in the comments below.
A Daily Practice of Greeting the Directions
Here’s another golden oldie. I don’t know about you, but I tend to be consistent about a particular practice for a certain amount of time and then it often falls by the wayside. This is one I’ve done off and on for years. You may have heard about it from me before. It doesn’t come from any one source, but emerged from my years of creating ceremony and connecting with the land.
It’s a good time for me to start this practice up again. I’m sharing it with you in case you feel inspired to do something similar.
This is a devotional practice that helps you to come into a deeper relationship with the Place where you live.
If you can, go outside each morning to greet the four directions, wherever you live. You might need a compass (or compass app) to discover where the directions are.
Begin by stepping outside your door each morning or whatever time works best for you. Greet the four directions in turn, beginning in the east. If you are housebound, you can do this practice near your favorite window.
Greet the East, South, West, and North in whatever way works best for you. It can be as simple as saying “Good morning, East! My, you are looking lovely today!” Turn to each direction with a similar greeting, and end back in the East with a gesture of respect. Perhaps you bow or put your hands on your heart.
You could also sing a song to each direction, say a mantra or prayer, or make a movement. You could lift a cup of water or tea and pour it out onto the ground, in each direction. Speaking from the heart is always a good way to go.
As you turn to each direction, notice what you see and sense. Greet the nature beings as if they were sentient beings, which of course they are. You may need to use your imagination. For example, when I turn to the east and south, I see woods and pond, but when I turn to the west and north, all I see is siding and my back door. So I have to imagine what’s on the other side of the building.
Come into relationship with all the Beings. Notice what happens as you do this practice every day.
Thank you for listening.
May the New Year bring your heart’s desire.
Blessings of the Threshold,
About me: I’m Joanna Powell Colbert, creator of the Gaian Tarot and the Pentimento Tarot, and co-creator of the Herbcrafter’s Tarot. I write and teach about tarot, earth-centered spirituality, seasonal & lunar lore, and creativity as a spiritual practice. You can also connect with me on Instagram or Facebook.
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I turn 60 in 9 days, and this is the first New Year I consciously decided not to make a single resolution. Oh, I have hopes and dreams for the year, but my ritualistic review of the past year, what no longer serves me and needs releasing, what I want to manifest, didn’t feel right. In fact, when I sat down to do it, I felt imprisoned by it and a touch of despair about never making good on so many of the resolutions I set for myself over the years. I’m done with that pressure and creeping sense of failure to deliver. What arose was a wonderful sense of spaciousness, an opening to whatever comes and the freedom to leave all choices available to me. What will unfold without my pushing and pulling at myself? Let’s see...
While reading about the directions which is something I do off and on, a new idea came to me to think about the path to the end of the continent. It's also a great way for me to work on my geography which is still a subject I've never been good at. 💜🎉