Thoughts on a Slow Start to the New Year

Swallowtail Hill regulars will know that we’re all about tapping into life lived more slowly. We call it the S’Lowdown as it’s the special Swallowtail Hill flavour of taking things at a pace that doesn’t leave us frazzled and disconnected.

So I regularly disappear from socials – because if I’m entirely honest – being a slave to the scroll doesn’t really match up to our values and it’s all too easy to get sucked back in which definitely has an effect on my mood.  The great irony – that I’ve talked about before – is that my business is all about advocating for the benefits of time spent offline, but the accepted ‘norm’ in which to promote that business is via the very platforms that I’m suggesting we need time away from.  So I’ve learned the hard way that it’s a question of balance – enough time on these small squares to be useful, but not so much that I become overwhelmed. 
 
Right now how about we collectively just agree to ease ourselves gently into 2025? I’m going to endeavour to do that because I really find it helps.  No new look, new you. No regimes or rules, no strict goals, targets or resolutions  to get worked up about in the coldest darkest months – that’s not Swallowtail Hill at all.  Just some of the things that help me at this time of year that you might find helpful too.   A quick scroll has shown me that it’s way too ‘noisy’ out there folks! If we’re starting as we mean to go on – limit your time online  –  your scroll will be way too full of people telling you how to BE BETTER / DIFFERENT / MORE for 2025, and I reckon you’re good enough just as you are.  
 
A little reminder that nature is busy resting right now. The Spring Equinox is when energy rises and new life begins to emerge. So why are you trying to muster some spring livliness in January?  It’s winter – time to conserve energy and restore ourselves in readiness for the seasons that await. Our lives are led by a calendar that is counterintuitive to nature’s own rhythms, no wonder we find winter tricky! 
 
A quick scroll this morning offered me 2 different diets, 3 fitness challenges and numerous reels suggesting EVERYONE* (*not everyone) is goal setting  and vision board creating. What if your slow start to the year just ignored all that noise? Noise designed, ultimately to make you feel bad and spend money  in pursuit of feeling better.  What if breathing deeply and letting go of some tension was actually all the tonic you need right now, today? Usually when I’m sidetracked by all of this online stuff – I’m ‘in my head’ and not ‘in my body’ – allowing yourself to pause a while, might be helpful? Try it – it’s not going to damage your bank balance and it might just help.