Last year was hard on me. Karma was burning, consuming my flesh, both figuratively and literally. Lessons were compounded by emotional work, all of which had to get done. I experienced health problems, put on the weight that I had worked so hard to shed in the first half of the year. Stress seemed to be a constant companion. But this is not a post about pain. It’s about release.
Because of the difficulties I faced, I turned inward, reading, praying and listening for answers. Perchance I came across a suggestion in a book that said people should write all their disappointments down and release them in ritual form. That’s just what I did.
On my finest stationary stock, written with a very fancy pen and high-quality ink, I wrote out as many disappointments, betrayals, losses and failures that I could remember, after which I wrote a short paragraph asking for and granting forgiveness to all, named or unnamed. I sealed it in finery, befitting the occasion, and on New Year’s Day, I burned my “Good Riddance, 2014!” letter as I sat outside beneath the winter moon. Those ashes will forever be part of the soil in my garden.
And when I left the garden, I was definitely lighter.
Karma Compass 
I love this, Edissa. A ritual, a powerful time of year, prayer, surrender, and trust.