First tracks. Looking ahead at unspoiled terrain inviting your footprints; looking back to see where you’ve come from. Ah, the symbolism is rich, is it not?

Be bold, step out into a place where you’ve not been; be confident, knowing that if you make a wrong turn you can always retrace your steps and begin again.

Alone or in community the significance is sweet. January 1^st is as well. It’s not only the first day of a new year, it’s the first day of a new decade. What will we do with it?

What did we do with the previous one? (begs a recap, doesn’t it?) My own 10 years were packed with personal, professional and athletic challenges and successes, bursting at the seams with change, yet always marching forward on the same path with the same private yearning to be a better and more worthy human being. I need to work at bravery and have found myself well beyond my comfort zone far too often, But, you know what? My comfort zone has grown! And so have my practices, goals, and preferences. Expansive living may be a product of age. Is time flying by too quickly? Yes! I have so much I want to accomplish – but don’t we all? (And, BTW, if I let concerns about aging creep in, I need only remind myself that there are people running for PRESIDENT who are older than me. I’ve got this!)

New Year’s Resolutions may be passé, but setting achievable goals is always in vogue. When I work with a client, I might ask – and why are we doing this? What is your target area? Can you feel your muscles, bones, whatever, respond? Do you understand why this or that is important?

When I teach a Yoga class I might ask what is your intention for this asana, this practice, this day? When I invite someone new into my BCBS hiking group, The Hiking Connection, I ask them to realistically define their hiking goals over the course of multiple months.

As athletes, fitness enthusiasts, parents, and friends it is worthwhile to identify wants, needs, risks and rewards, to set meaningful goals and then do the work to achieve those goals.

There is always a first step, perhaps those first tracks. How relevant is it to lace up your running shoes, walk into a gym, dive into a pool, pump up your bike tires, click into your bindings or step onto your yoga mat.  The rest will not follow until you make that first move, and what may follow just might be the revelation of first tracks into what is unknown.

While this is all poetic and lovely to ponder, it is also a call to action. Nothing, absolutely nothing, will happen unless you do it. (I will forever appreciate the Nike “Just Do It” slogan!) It is not a matter of perfection, beauty or winning. It is a matter of knowing what tools are in your tool box, which ones need sharpening and what others you might need to work to acquire. Making the most of your physical strengths and weakness is only a piece of the pie. Consider motivation, enthusiasm, a positive outlook, the hunger to learn, a willingness to share, the determination to see it through and the wisdom to make good choices.

There were many moments during this past holiday that I thought – It just doesn’t get any better than this. I awkwardly dragged in my Christmas tree, managed to set it up and trim it without incident, then turned off all the lights to sit and soak up the silent beauty.  It just doesn’t get any better than this. I snuggled my 4 grandchildren in a pile of quilts, blankets and pillows for our vacation sleepover making plans for snow play the following morning and giggling over the onslaught of Sophie’s kisses. It just doesn’t get any better than this. I wrapped presents, tying them up with love and thought It just doesn’t get any better than this. I made it a point to pause early each morning with my first cup of coffee and my Sophie in my lap (sort of, she’s awfully big for that but tries) looking out as the day began to dawn and thought It just doesn’t get any better than this. As a teacher sitting quietly observing diverse students in my classes during Savasana, connection palpable, I thought It just doesn’t get any better than this. And today, headed out into the woods with my precious pup, softly crunching new snow under my boots and laughing at her antics as she ran and rolled in the fabulous white stuff, I was convinced that It just doesn’t get any better than this.

May you have many, many such moments in 2020 and may you reach many, if not all, of your goals and carefully structured expectations. Namaste. Happy First Tracks!