Resolution vs. Intention
Every January, we go about setting resolutions, which after a few days, weeks, or even less than a month, they’ve turned into dust and have floated away like the hours we were so keen on changing.
Defined as a ‘firm decision,’ a resolution is something we make but can change or fade over time. A resolution strikes me as a one-time event where a decision made, and that’s it. There is no follow-through, no follow-up plan.
Defined as an ‘aim or plan,’ an intention is something we can formulate. We can plan for. We set an idea in motion with an intention statement or thought, and whether we acknowledge it or not, The Universe has a plan to follow through and deliver it to us.
In my book, Today I Am… An Empowering Journal Back To Self, I write about setting intentions. Every day when I write my gratitude statements, I also write out three intentions statements determining how I would like my day to go. Of course, I keep this positive. Why wouldn’t I! The magical thing is that when I set these intentions and review them at the end of the day, I find they have almost always come true.
Yesterday we had a power failure in our home. It disrupted our electronic clocks and their alarm settings. My husband didn’t check his alarm time. He just pressed the usual button to set it on for the morning. It didn’t go off at the planned time, and he was about 15 minutes late in getting up and ready for work. He suggested to me that, “My whole day is going to be off now. I’m too rushed!”
I replied that wasn’t a good intention – seeing your whole day, which hasn’t even begun as ‘being off.’ I can’t wait to ask him tonight how his day went (LOL).
You see, setting an intention activates the conscious mind to receive that which is put forth. The Universe sets in motion the aim as you formed and thought it, giving it directly to you, showing you how powerful thought manifestation is.
Setting “the power of intention” to determine a specific outcome is a useful practice. To test it, the next time you are out and about and need a perfect parking space close to the door, set the intention that you will “find the perfect parking spot to meet your needs.” Let it go and see what happens. The result of the aim or plan will come to pass when you are thankful and content – “putting it out there” vs. “I want/need this – give it to me.”
This January, you can make an intention for good health, fitness, and well-being for the remainder of the year rather than the resolution of going to the gym three times a week all year long. You may be surprised at the many different ways The Universe delivers and provides you opportunities to improve your health and fitness over the year.
2020 is a fabulous year!
When we settle a ghost of the past
The families of the troops relied heavily on letters and communication from their loved ones during the war, and Queenie was no different. From 1914 to 1918, postcards were sent throughout the world and had worldwide popularity. Families and soldiers avidly sent and collected these small non-descript notes from home and cherished them with love. Canadian soldiers waited over three weeks to a month for news from home, as the mail was processed through England first. 
It took me a long time to learn gratitude. True, all my life I’ve been grateful. Thanking people when a ‘thank you’ was due — receiving gifts with a smile. Merely being a nice, ‘thank you,’ kind of person. Until I learned what being grateful was all about, I realized that those times in my life while I was thankful for the gifts I received, I don’t think I felt gratitude deep within my heart.
When we take time out of our day to be mindful, to be in the moment, to pause, is when we can see things around us that bring us joy, such as the beauty of a sunrise, or ice crystals in the air, a butterfly flitting about or a colourful rainbow. In my 