How can you tell what’s important and what is not? All day and night you have choices to make about the signals that stream in, creating feelings and thoughts. They demand that you either accept or reject the ideas that they represent.

Family situations, relationships with your neighbors, something at work that needs to be handled or your own feelings and thoughts… or all of the above. It’s usually a combination of things you care about and things you don’t care about, but have to deal with anyway.

Stop for a Moment and Look at the Flow of Signals

What responses are being requested? Are they in alignment with your true priorities in life? Are you being asked to step out of your comfort one? Who is served by your going there?

Is what is being asked of you out of alignment with your true values? Or, are you being asked for your own best wisdom? Who will benefit from the actions you take or do not take?

It’s a challenge to make the distinctions, since there are so many types of responsibility. Each day requires changing your point of view at least a few times to accommodate the needs of the moment.

Ask yourself what purpose is being served by each of the signals. This way, they will become easier to decipher and prioritize. What is your role in the train of events? If you are being asked to play a role that is out of touch with your values, in order to make things work for someone else, how much value does that add to your life and that of those you care about?

When is the Right Time to React?

There are times when it’s best to just let sleeping dogs lie. At other times, a sharp distinction needs to be drawn and you need to decide whether you point it out to others or not. When you are clear in your own mind about your feelings, you can adapt your responses to create the result you desire, without getting caught up in other people’s processes.

Have a look at who is doing the asking. What will happen to them – and to you – because of how you placed your priorities?

You are the one who will make the priorities that shape your life and relationships. When you are clear within yourself about your values, you can see that the urgency that is often projected about small things is an energy drain.

Be Aware of the Risks of “False Urgency”

False urgency drains away mental and emotional energy and keeps true solutions from being generated. Think about what true inspiration is like. It’s not urgent.

True inspiration is gentle and has plenty of time to unfold. It has room for everyone. It just appears, without asking you to do anything except notice it.

As we gain spiritual awareness later in life, we can let go of the need to engage with some of the urgency that others project. We can cultivate a calm perspective. Life does contain truly urgent situations, but they are relatively few.

Don’t Forget to Look at the Big Picture

Taking a larger view of things serves you and those around you. It makes the world a better place. You can be an island of calm where true solutions are generated and save your energy for things that are more meaningful and long-lasting. It’s more efficient to look for the long view of things and let the moment unfold.

What is your purpose in doing what you are doing today? Do you have opportunities to make small changes that expand your wisdom? What choices can you make to improve your live and expand your role in your community?

Make that First Little Change and See What Opens Up for You

Your first change can be as simple as not telling people what you think until you are sure they are ready to hear you. It could be that you have a chance to let the moment ripen until the other person is ready to hear what you have to say.

You can be the example who doesn’t say a word, but, instead makes things work. You can let others become curious about what you are doing. Eventually, people will ask you questions, ready to listen to what you have to say. You will have silently demonstrated your priorities without explaining anything.

It’s Time to Make Room in Your Life for Your True Self

When you make room for yourself and nourish your own values, at the time when you are required to be flexible and change your ideas or responses in some way, it’s not a big deal. You already understand that you are bigger than the thing in front of you. You are more important than the matter at hand.

The moment opens up and gets both bigger and smaller. You have what it takes to light up the time. It’s another moment that contains the seed of better understanding and you can step into it with confidence.

The gift of time allows you to see the opening in the moment and, rather than rushing through it, you see the opportunities it presents and are calm and flexible enough to act on them.

Then you can select the action that is best for you and make the most of everything that the moment represents.

Do you agree that life after 60 should be a time for aligning all of your actions with your values? What would you do with your life if you knew that you could not fail? Let’s start a conversation.

Do you ever find yourself in a fluster searching frantically for your phone, your wallet, or a set of keys that appears to have magically disappeared into thin air? If you do, you are certainly not alone. Every day, men and women of all ages experience some type of short-term forgetfulness or memory loss.

For many of us, it can be a totally normal part of everyday life. However, in certain people, memory loss can develop into a severe degenerative health issue that seriously impedes their quality of life.

What Does Short Term Memory Loss Signal?

Our brain mirrors the effects of our lifestyle and age. It ages just like the rest of our body. With the greying of hair, so too, our ability to learn and recall might slowly fade. The process may be pushed along by excessive drinking and smoking or health issues such as severe depression or stroke.

What can be most difficult though, is acknowledging the signs that determine whether memory loss is a serious health issue or a consequence of lifestyle such as lack of sleep, medications, or stress.

We all have our moments of forgetting where the keys are or what our password is, and that’s totally fine. Usually, those days are the result of sudden and reversable changes in our lifestyle, meaning that a good night’s sleep, relaxation, or a new medication will also see a potentially positive change in your memory.

Signs of Memory Health Issues

However, what signs might indicate a more serious memory health issue? Not all types of forgetfulness and memory loss are equal, but if you do notice these signs, then it’s definitely worth consulting your health care professional:

Asking Again and Again

One sign is when you notice yourself or a loved one ask the same questions or tell the same story over and over again.

Help, I’m Lost

If you or a loved one experiences confusion, can’t find their way, or gets lost frequently, that’s another sign.

Changes in Mood

Frustration, anger, and unanticipated mood changes can also signal a problem with memory.

Genes, Self-Care, and Memory

Serious memory diseases are sometimes related to our DNA and genetics. For example, it is believed that if one or both of our parents suffered severe memory loss, we are more likely to experience it.

In most cases, though, we do have the capacity to change the habits that either help or hinder our memory. No one knows you better than you. Listen to your body.

One of the simplest, most proactive action you can take every day to help keep memory loss at bay is to eat a balanced diet. One that is high in fresh foods that will nourish the brain with the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals it needs to stay in peak condition and functional effectively.

A diet high in Vitamin B12 is believed to increase blood circulation in the brain and lessen “fuzzy” memory days. Foods high in Vitamin B12 include meat, poultry, fish, and dairy products.

If you have a day where you forget a name or can’t recall the last book you read, it might just be because you have had a momentary lapse of reason – a “bad day”. But if you do find yourself getting lost or forgetting names one too many times, then take the time to talk to your health care professional.

What do you forget most often? Do you find yourself forgetting one too many times? Or is it just a momentary lapse? Please share your forgetful moments with the community!

2020 has given us many challenges and some blessings in disguise. I am certainly grateful for the lessons I’ve learned this year which forced me out of my comfort zone and made me stronger. That said, I’m hopeful that next year’s lessons will be lighter and easier, and I’m ready to welcome 2021.

If you feel the same, keep reading to find out how you can welcome the New Year 10 days early this year. I’ll share with you two reasons and one ritual for honoring the solstice on December 21. Adiós, 2020!

Mother Nature Celebrates New Year’s on December 21

In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice is the shortest day and longest night. From this point until June 21, the days grow longer. Our sisters in the Southern Hemisphere experience this too, but simply on reversed dates.

Through the fall season, Mother Nature has been guiding us to rest and turn inward. The trees have dropped their leaves, animals have grown thicker fur, and the darkness tucks me into bed early each night.

I feel a palpable downshift in my energy in November and early December, as I wrap up this year’s projects and try not to take on anything new.

Even if you live in a warm climate that doesn’t experience a dramatic fall or winter, you can still observe subtle changes in plants and animals from month to month.

As we mature, we tend to see things more holistically. That’s wisdom, right?

This year, you may not be able to travel nor gather, create nor participate in holiday traditions. It may be a gift just this once. Take the cue from the natural world, release your attachment to established holidays, and celebrate Mother Nature’s New Year on December 21.

The Solstice Kicks Off a 10-Day Grace Period

I see the 10-day span between December 21 and January 1 as a grace period. In spiritual traditions, grace is defined as a freely given gift from God. Other definitions are simple elegance, and to bestow one’s presence on someone.

In the past, I often crammed this week and a half with travel, socializing, errands, and to-do lists, as it was one of my rare times off work. Now I’ve learned to treat this time with more grace: less busy-ness, more presence, and an intention to receive the gift of time.

This grace period is an ideal time to practice next year’s goals and intentions, without pressure. I think of it like a “test drive” for next year’s habits.

If you want to start walking daily, or doing yoga, or cooking soups, ease into those goals after the solstice. Try them on and see how you might need to tweak them for success next year. If you haven’t quite wrapped up 2020’s projects, do so at this time.

1 Simple Ritual to Honor the Solstice

I do this simple ritual on both the solstices and equinoxes. It’s how I prioritize how I will spend my energy and time in the coming season.

Step 1

Write down one thing you want to release or get rid of from your life, such as worry, pain, fear, etc. This year I am letting go of “being too busy.” Use a paper that is not bound in a journal.

Step 2

On a separate piece of paper or two, write down one thing you are grateful for and one way you will serve others for the next three months. For my gratitude reminder, I choose something that I want to be more mindful of, or something I want to create.

As an example, this solstice I am writing down, “I am grateful for deep, restful sleep.” For service, I wrote down, “I commit to listening,” to remind me of my intention to listen more attentively, as a way of serving others. I use adhesive Post-it notes so that I can easily keep these on my desk.

Step 3

On or before December 21, burn the paper with what you want to release. Take some time to let go emotionally, mentally, and physically.

Post the others in a place you will see them regularly. I also recommend that you spend some time appreciating the sun and the moon that day, to remind you of Mother Nature’s New Year.

Then enter your 10-day grace period with grace. Don’t complain about the absence of the usual holiday traditions, people, and things. Instead, be wise, full of grace, and present to what is. Conserve some energy and time for what nourishes you, and try on your new habits for a head-start on 2021.

Now it’s your turn.

How do you honor the solstice? How do you prepare yourself for the New Year? Will you do something different this year? Please leave a comment below.