Jan 1, 2026

Who we get to be

Reflections for the Year of the Snake

Happy New Year, brilliant embodied ones,

The New Year is here. And while we honor many portals of rebirth, like after a cleanse, birthday, equinox, the turning of this calendar that governs our collective rhythm, especially in how we relate to one another and plan our days, holds a particular power too.

2025, the Year of the Snake, humbled me.

To shed old skins.

It was painful.

To move slowly through the underbrush of shadows and do the best I can to emerge transformed in some way.

It meant returning to the student role in ways I never anticipated.

💔 Heartbreak like no other taught me about my relational patterns.

🫂 My sister and best friend becoming mothers, invited me to devote myself to the magic of mamas, and eventually, to train as a full-spectrum doula.

🫀 Witnessing borders grow taller while our hearts call us closer, learning to hold the paradox of living in a world that tries to divide us even as most of us crave togetherness. Pulling me to open my heart in the most unlikely places, and to the most unlikely people.

Each chapter humblingly pushed me deeper into connection as an auntie, a lover, a daughter, a student, a teacher, a guide.

Pleasing to Binging

I'd spent years people-pleasing and binge eating without realizing the two were connected. That I was using food to recover from the stress of fawning, of performing and freezing simultaneously, creating tension and anxiety that food helped me numb.

Previous story video about food and fawning to process this. Maybe you relate.

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​2026 arrives as a (1) year in numerology - The Year of the Fire Horse

A year of beginnings.

The second half of the decade.

A year for defiant joy, truth, courage, peace, freedom, beauty, and love.

A year to center on the essence of your being and act in the world with wholeness and dignity.

I found these fiery glittery shoes on New Year's Eve while walking with my family.

A reminder that magic appears when we're willing to see it.

The Year of the Horse invites us to move with this kind of sparkle: bold, courageous, unexpected, impossible to ignore.

Regret or Inner Peace

It has been found that when we die, most won't say, "I wish I hadn't done that thing." They say, "I wish I had just done it."

Taking time to reflect on who you were and who you're becoming isn't just contemplation; it changes your trajectory.

It helps you identify the thing that matters.

Then we must truly act like it matters.

This might not be a particular goal to achieve, but the person you get to be every day while making that thing matter.

For me, the thing is courage and inner peace.

Being courageous over and over becomes my gateway to peace, away from regrets and toward freedom. Knowing I did the best I could with what I got.

A Simple Practice to Find Your One Thing

1. Review 2025 honestly.

What humbled you?

What patterns revealed themselves?

What did you shed?

2. Notice what you're defending against.

Where are you people-pleasing, numbing, avoiding?

What does your North Node (Rahu, the "head of the dragon") tell you?

This area represents your soul's destiny, karmic lessons, and areas of intense desire, craving, and spiritual growth for this lifetime.

3. Ask: Who do I want to be in 2026? What does that person do day to day? What has this year asked me to let go of to be that person?

Not what you want to accomplish.

Who do you want to be in this journey through life?

Courageous? Present? Honest? Free?

4. Choose a word or phrase.

This is your anchor. Your north star.

The quality you practice daily, regardless of outcomes.

5. Return to it every morning.

Before you check your phone, before coffee, ask:

"Show me how I can embody _____ today?"

Take 2 mins to visualize yourself moving through the day as you lead with that essence. See yourself making choices, feel it in your body.

You will be so proud and maybe shocked to see how your life changes.

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The Year of the Horse invites:

movement,

vitality,

and bold action,

rooted in authentic presence.

May 2026 be a year of centering on the essence of your being, of focus and confidence to be and act in the world with wholeness and dignity.

I wish you an honorable closing of the Snake's wisdom and a New Year full of the highest vibrations.

With love and warmth,
Veronica

P.S. - It is time to plan our next gathering. August / September 2026 will be our Panchakarma retreat/ cleanse in the US.

Message if you want to stay in the loop.