Begin Again
by: Rosa Mendoza
As we begin this year feeling a little more hopeful, it’s worth exploring why this January feels different from those of recent years.
In numerology, the numbers of a year are added together and reduced to a single digit. Each number carries its own energetic themes, moving in a chronological cycle from 1 through 9. 2025 was a nine year, 2026: we’re back at 1.
Nine Year
Nine represents completion, endings, and karmic closure. It is the wisdom earned through experience—the quiet knowing that comes from finishing cycles and releasing what has run its course. A nine year often pulls at our compassion, inviting deep introspection and asking us to shed the weight we’ve been carrying so we can eventually return to one—beginning again.
Before any true beginning, there must be release.
Release is rarely simple. It may involve untangling ourselves from outdated narratives, long-held identities, or even relationships that have quietly reached their end. If letting go were effortless, we would move through life unburdened. Instead, release asks us to meet our humanity with grace.
At the heart of this process lies forgiveness.
We forgive to soften.
We forgive to lighten the body and spirit.
We forgive because we are imperfect, evolving beings.
And above all, we forgive to preserve our health—energetic, emotional, and physical.
Forgiveness may require repetition, patience, and multiple approaches. What matters is the willingness to begin.
Below are a few simple rituals you can practice to help clear stagnant energy and prepare your vessel for the abundance ahead.
Salt Bath
Light a white candle and place it safely near the bath. As the water fills, add natural bath salts and any herbs or oils you’re drawn to.
Pause and set an intention:
“I release what no longer serves me and welcome peace and clarity.”
Soak for 15–20 minutes, allowing the salt to cleanse your energy and the candle’s light to offer calm and protection.
When complete, drain the water, releasing what feels heavy. Extinguish the candle with gratitude and move gently forward.
2. Fast
Spiritual fasting is a gentle pause from consumption, creating space for clarity, presence, and renewal.
Before the Fast
Set a clear intention. Eat light, nourishing foods and avoid alcohol or heavy meals.
The Fast
Choose a supportive duration (12–24 hours).
Drink water freely. Herbal tea or warm lemon water is permitted.
Move slowly. Rest, journal, pray, or meditate.
Limit distractions and external noise.
Focus
Return often to your intention.
“I clear space for clarity and alignment.”
Breaking the Fast
Break the fast gently with simple foods. Eat slowly and mindfully.
Note
This practice should feel supportive. If discomfort arises, end the fast. Avoid fasting if pregnant or managing health conditions without guidance.
3. Physically Remove Yourself
To physically remove yourself from environments that keep you locked in limiting vibrations is one of the most powerful acts of self-respect. While some situations are easier to step away from than others, remember this: as long as breath continues to move through your body, transformation remains possible. Your surroundings are not fixed—they are responsive.
Presence is the gateway to change. When you take an honest assessment of your environment—what drains you, what anchors you, what no longer belongs—you begin to lighten the energetic load you carry. Even subtle shifts create space for clarity and renewal.
Astrological seasons remind us that life moves in cycles of sowing and harvest. Capricorn season, in particular, brings accountability into sharp focus. It asks for discernment, discipline, and refinement. As new routines take shape, this is an ideal moment to quietly remove what no longer supports your highest functioning.
Look closely. Release with intention.
Commit to taking yourself seriously—not temporarily, but continually.
4. Write A Letter To Yourself
On the path to forgiveness, the most important person to forgive is yourself.
We forgive ourselves for what we did not know, for moments of misalignment, for lapses in discernment, and for what we allowed—both within ourselves and from others, whether large or subtle.
In this letter, give yourself permission to acknowledge the full spectrum of your experience: the struggle, the resilience, the strength, and the softness. Hold both your limitations and your growth with equal compassion.
Let this be an act of empowerment.
A conscious release.
A gentle initiation into your Number One year—rooted in clarity, self-trust, and renewal.
5. Seek Professional Help
The intimacy of working one-on-one with another human being is among the most meaningful forms of support we can experience. While friends and family often serve as our first circle of care, their love can naturally limit objectivity. Support rooted in closeness, though well-intentioned, is not always impartial.
When we speak of seeking professional help, we mean this with intention.
The digital age has made information and advice widely accessible, yet it cannot replace the depth, presence, and accountability that come from a dedicated professional relationship. Working with someone who has committed their life to supporting others offers a level of attunement, structure, and care that cannot be replicated through informal guidance.
When choosing professional support, discernment matters. Take time to understand the training, credentials, and ethical standards that qualify someone in their field. These foundations are not formalities—they are what uphold safety, integrity, and trust.
Professionalism is, at its core, an act of service. It is the offering of skill, presence, and ethical care by someone who has undergone intentional training in service to others.
6. Learn Something New
When we learn something new, the brain forms fresh neural connections, expanding both capacity and perception. Growth is not only conceptual—it is physical, lived, and embodied.
Let this year be an invitation to explore what you’ve been meaning to develop. New skills, ideas, and curiosities offer more than knowledge; they create space to meet yourself again, through a different lens.
7. Dance
Dance is one of the most natural ways to renew energy. Before words, ritual, or structure, the body knew how to move what it felt. Through movement, stagnant energy is stirred, released, and transformed.
When we dance with intention—without performance or expectation—the body becomes a vessel for release and renewal. Tension softens, emotions find expression, and energy begins to circulate freely again. Even a few minutes of intuitive movement can shift the nervous system, clear heaviness, and restore vitality.
Dance does not require choreography. It asks only for presence. It is an invitation to return to the body, to listen, and to allow energy to move as it needs. In this way, dance becomes both grounding and liberating—a ritual of reconnection, renewal, and self-trust.
8. Check In
The ritual of checking in with yourself is essential. In a world that moves quickly and constantly, this practice is often the first to be overlooked. Too often, we only pause when discomfort becomes impossible to ignore.
Begin each day with a brief moment of awareness. Notice how your body feels, how your energy moves, how your mind arrives. Let this information guide your choices—rest when you need softness, move when you need circulation, nourish when you need support.
Consistent self-check-ins create balance. They allow you to respond with intention rather than urgency, cultivating steadiness in an otherwise unpredictable world.
9. Take Aromatherapy Breaks
Aromatherapy works through one of the most direct pathways to the mind—the sense of smell. Scent bypasses logic and language, moving straight to the nervous system where memory, emotion, and focus reside. A single inhale can shift awareness, regulate energy, and bring the mind back into the present moment.
Rosemary, in particular, has long been associated with mental clarity and remembrance. Its sharp, green aroma awakens the senses, cuts through mental fog, and sharpens focus. Rosemary stimulates alertness without agitation, making it a powerful ally for concentration, creativity, and cognitive renewal.
Used intentionally, rosemary becomes more than a scent—it is a signal to the mind to engage, refine, and return to clarity. A simple inhale can recalibrate attention and restore mental presence.
Rosemary Inhalation Ritual
Place one drop of rosemary essential oil onto your palms or a cloth.
Bring the hands gently toward your face.
Close your eyes and inhale slowly through the nose for a count of four.
Pause briefly.
Exhale through the mouth for a count of six.
As you breathe, imagine the mind clearing and focus sharpening.
Repeat for 3–5 breaths, allowing clarity and alert presence to settle in.
Use this ritual before work, study, or whenever the mind feels scattered.