greeting the new year


It’s here – 2019, that is. I awoke on new year’s day feeling the same as always, and thought to myself – “huh…”
Honestly, I am not sure what I was expecting – so, after a wintry morning walk up on the mountain, I prepared a champagne brunch – just Greg and myself.
And so began the new year.

Photography Challenge

I was excited to tear open my new journal – a cheery bright green – and started creating pages for the many things I plan to explore, this year; pages for photography, yoga, art journaling and blogging. My photography page includes a “challenge” to keep me clicking – instead of random weekly prompts, I will choose a monthly topic – skills that I actually want to learn. My goal is to complete ten of them over the course of the year. I am starting January with “negative space” – something I need to get more comfortable with.

I set a few goals for my blog and am hoping that work will quiet enough to provide a little more time. So far…

Bennington

No set goals for yoga, other than to be true and consistent with my practice. A wise person once said –
“Yoga is not about touching your toes. It’s about what you learn on the way down.” I remind myself of this, often.

Greg and I enjoyed a quiet week in Vermont, where I gave my mind a bit of a break (well, mostly). I broke out some new art supplies and made my first attempt at “art” journaling. I’m going to keep the quotation marks for now – really, I have no clue what I’m doing. But – when I let go of aiming for perfection, I have a lot of fun.

Dear Jane art journal page

My “Dear Jane” page, as a first project, may have been a bit ambitious – most of the time I look at this page and shrug, thinking “yeah – a bit of a mess” – and other times I rather like it. There is a lot of me on this page, and since this is a journal page, I am happy with that. I had so much fun that I signed up for Wanderlust, a year-long art journaling course. I kind of think that the first page for this project might be more my speed in that it really is meant to be a bit of a mess – just relax and smile. My page is… ummm…. so far – extremely colorful – and messy.

And so, cheers to 2019. My hope is to make this a year of exploration – trying new things, exploring new options. I am wishing you all the best for the new year!

Do you anticipate and plan for the new year, or just go with the flow?

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9 responses to “greeting the new year”

  1. Lynne Avatar

    Liking your art journaling look . . .
    I walked up the mountain road path with you . . . as I looked at your journal page.
    I find it fun to just let go, let what happens happen . . .
    Loved the first picture . . .
    What is it about “wee ones” . . . they bring me instant smiles . . .
    Happy New Days, Months . . . Karen . . .
    I saw this quote on a card . . . thought you might like . . .
    BE WHEREVER YOU WANT .
    OR NOWHERE
    YOU NEED TO BE
    just be

  2. Sarah Avatar
    Sarah

    I really like your Dear Jane page. It is the perfect winter scene. I think Wanderlust will be really good, although watching the week 2 lesson I was falling asleep. My own fault for watching at 9 p.m. after a long day with the puppy. Good for you to have photography goals. I can’t wait to watch you grow this year. I have to say my photography and blogging are at an all time low right now, but I do have a lot of other things on my plate…

  3. Helen Avatar
    Helen

    I love that yoga quote! Right now I am in a teacher training class and I am loving all that I am learning. Not sure if I will actually teach but mostly taking it for self growth. I am also working on minimizing…. little by little. Another big goal for the year (although I have done nothing to make it happen) is to train for a week long backpacking trip. Nothing like the AT but to me it’s a big deal 🙂

    1. Karen Lakis Avatar

      A week long backpacking trip sounds awesome. I’d kind of like to try an overnight trip (one night – lol), but the amount of gear I’d need seems daunting. There are a lot of yoga quotes that I like. Another has to do with not practicing yoga to get good at yoga, but to get good at life (definitely paraphrasing that one). Good luck with your training – I can’t wait to hear about what you have planned!

  4. Debbie Avatar

    your art is beautiful karen, i believe you are very talented. but with that said….it does not remind me of you. the bun, the scarf, no birds in the view from the window, not you!! the kids look great, i see you are learning that getting a picture, without movement, is impossible!! they are adorable!!

  5. Michelle B Avatar

    It looks like you are ready to explore the new year. Your photography prompts are a great idea. I am working on being consistent in my yoga, too, as well as my blog. I don’t plan too much and I think that is where my hopes for consistency fall short. I do love the yoga quote. There are many things I see other yogis do in class which I can’t do and I have to remind myself we all are at different levels, I guess just like in life…. Your art journal is beautiful. Thank you for the book recommendation you gave me. I will definitely check it out. The kiddos are adorable. 🙂

  6. Beatrice P. Boyd Avatar

    I have some projects, but don’t call them resolutions or anything that I would feel awful if not completed. I would also like to concentrate more on photographic projects and have been thinking about a separate photo blog which would have nothing more than a photo post without any pressure to do so daily. I think I saw that cat when we visited Vermont!

    1. Karen Lakis Avatar

      You very well may have seen that cat in Vermont. It is sitting in downtown Bennington. There are lots of these cats scattered throughout the area. Several year ago, there was a “catamount prowl” where several were painted by local artists and later auctioned off. One was even painted by Will Moses. It’s fun to stumble upon them.

  7. Barb Avatar

    I do believe that “every moment has its pleasures and its hopes”. I have always admired your willingness to tell (and show) your own truth. It’s a gift. Several things jumped out at me from your photography list. Do you mind if I copy it down for myself? Some of those things would challenge me too in the new year.

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