“At birth we are red-faced, round, intense, pure. The crimson fire of universal consciousness burns in us. Gradually, however, we are devoured by our parents, gulped by schools, chewed up by peers, swallowed by social institutions, wolfed by bad habits, and gnawed by age; and by that time we have been digested, cow style, in those six stomachs, we emerge a single disgusting shade of brown. The lesson of the beet, then, is this: hold on to your divine blush, your innate rosy magic, or end up brown. Once you’re brown, you’ll find that you’re blue. As blue as indigo. And you know what that means, Indigo. Indigoing. Indigone.”

-Tom Robbins

It's that time of year where many of us tend towards more refection and intention than usual.  We carve out time in the New Year in a way that is easily filled with many obligations and distractions as the year goes on.  However, underneath it all, there continues to be a whispered prodding:  remember, remember...

"Our great human adventure is the evolution of consciousness.  We are in this life to enlarge the soul, liberate the spirit, and light up the brain."
-Tom Robbins

We thankfully have this time and symbolic reminder to look forward and see the areas of our lives and ourselves that we want to raise up.  I can't help but wonder if we have some of it backwards.  What if instead of trying to do more or be better, we stripped some of that away and remembered our Real selves...the one before the conditioning and the doing and the perfecting.  What if we peered beneath all the identities and stories we've picked up and made up over the years...and let go of guilt and perfection to see what we Are?  It seems that may "fix" so many of the aspects of ourselves we struggle with.  Stop the presses, so to say...

"Normality is the Great Neurosis of civilization."  
-Tom Robbins

But everyone is doing it, and it is a little hard (until it isn't) to be different.  We are bombarded with commercials and media and friends and family who tell us all the shoulds and all the ways we must improve.  There is always room for improvement...that is part of the growing.  But, the way we beat ourselves with it and become such head cases about it makes it difficult for any other information to be received.  When we operate in these extremes, we miss all the more subtle queuing that can be essential.  What if we took all this reflection and intention we are in right now, softened it a bit around the edges, and went through each day with a bit more awareness?  What if that became the "new normal"?