Liminal Space | Intentions Setting 2024

Richard Rohr describes liminal space this way: ‘where we are betwixt and between the familiar and the completely unknown. There alone is our old world left behind, while we are not yet sure of the new existence. That’s a good space where genuine newness can begin.’

The liminal space holds so much mystery, potential and magic when we simply step into it, use our intention to look behind and honour what has been, and relax into the ease of the present moment to prepare for what’s coming.

On the dark evening of December 28, in the middle of the cold Rocky Mountains, mindfulness teacher Trish Tutton and I created a space for people to dive right into the liminal space, and join us to explore what it was time to let go of and to contemplate what we wanted to prepare for in our coming year. 

Our location was exquisite for this kind of work, with dim lighting, candles everywhere, blankets and pillows, couches and comfy chairs, and an intimately small space that allowed us to connect easily, do independent contemplation and share with each other.

The experience of "Liminal Space" was truly uplifting for me as it allowed me to set my intentions for the year ahead. Working with Kelly and Trish was a revelation, as I discovered intentions that my intuition led me towards, and their guidance helped me to stay motivated and inspired.

Kate Stadel

For those of you who missed it here are some of the things that you can do to move into the new year in a good way:

First, listen to this recording of Trish’s visualization - letting go. I had a profound awareness sink into me listening to Trish talk about the river metaphor. There is an area in my life where I am hanging onto the riverbanks for dear life, scrabbling for a good handhold and getting pummelled by the rushing water. I was struck by the idea of just letting go of all that desperate energy and going with the current, floating on my back. Trish mentioned one of her favourite mantras, ‘May I trust in the mysterious unfolding of my life.’  To me, the mysterious unfolding of life has so much room for awe, wonder and delight, as well as surprises and unexpected twists and turns. This is the biggest thing I am taking away with me from our time all together. What if I just let go and trust?

Write your list of what it’s time to let go of - anything that is no longer serving you. Anything that you’re putting energy and time into that isn’t serving your greater good. 

Once you have that list, with intention, destroy it. Burn it (safely!), rip it into a thousand pieces, throw it in the river, bury it in the ground, or, like one of my clients, run it over with your car not once, but four times (!!). The point here is to anchor the intention to let those things go. Is it an immediate magic trick where those things will be released immediately? No. But creating the intention, writing it down and destroying it anchors your desire in your mind, heart and body.

Now, acknowledge yourself. You’ve had a journey through so many ups and downs and middling spaces. What do you want to acknowledge about yourself? Write that down too. ‘I want to acknowledge myself for ___________________. Because of my ________________ I have been able to create _____________.

With all that done, it’s time to turn your attention to what you want to create for 2024. If you have a set of my values cards, get them out. If you don’t, check out the values list below. What are the top 5 ASPIRING values you want to live into in 2024? Aspiring values are ones that you don’t have yet, or don’t have at the level you want them. You’ll probably look at the list and see 10 or more that you’d like to bring into 2024. Get discerning and cut the list to your top 5. 

Once you have your aspiring values, define them uniquely for you. Everyone holds the same broad definition for values like love, freedom, connection, badass, integrity, but you want to define for yourself uniquely. Once you’ve defined the value, imagine into how it will support you going forward. 

To anchor your aspiring values you can:

• Make some art with the words incorporated and put the art somewhere you’ll see it every day

• Create a ‘badass’ or ‘ease’ or ‘____’ playlist (if you do this, please share it with me, I love values-based playlists!)

• Have a dinner party with the theme of value.

• Talk about your aspiring values with someone you trust

• Journal about what will be different for you if you’re truly living these values in 3 months, 6 months and a year from now. 

Enjoy this play with your aspiring values. I have an aspiring value of ‘wild-hearted’. It captured me as a concept 2 years ago, and I’m still playing with what it means for me, but the exploration and experimentation with it is really fun and interesting.

Do you want to deepen this work? You know where to find me. I love working in the liminal space, betwixt and between, in the space of neither here nor there. It’s a beautiful space to take a breath, become present and acknowledge how far we’ve come and dream into what we want to create next.

I signed up for Liminal Space and I was expecting a nourishing, cup-filling evening of reflection (because I already knew how incredible Kelly and Trish are!). What I got was that and so much more. Kelly and Trish created a space that was beautiful, quiet, safe and thought-provoking. I recommend joining Kelly and Trish if you are looking for a creative and supportive environment to gain clarity around your values and visualize into your next steps. I especially loved that although I've worked with both Kelly and Trish before, the experience was something new and valuable yet again. Every time we work together, I uncover something new and come away feeling refreshed and motivated.

Afton Brazzoni

Do you have chills just thinking about it? I do too. 

I read this, from David Whyte’s Consolations, at the beginning of Liminal Space, and I thought you might enjoy it as you start into your own practice of setting intentions.

BEGINNING

well or beginning poorly, what is important is simply to begin, but the ability to make a good beginning is also an art form, beginning well involves a clearing away of the crass, the irrelevant and the complicated to find the beautiful, often hidden lineaments of the essential and the necessary.

Beginning is difficult, and our procrastination is a fine, ever-present measure of our reluctance to take that first close-in, courageous step in reclaiming our happiness. Perhaps, because taking a new step always leads to a kind of radical internal simplification, where, suddenly, very large parts of us, parts of us we have kept gainfully employed for years, parts of us still rehearsing the old complicated story, are suddenly out of a job. There occurs in effect, a form of internal corporate downsizing, where the parts of us too afraid to participate or having nothing now to offer, are let go, with all of the accompanying death-like trauma, and where the very last fight occurs, a rear guard disbelief that this new, less complicated self, and this very simple step, is all that is needed for the new possibilities ahead.

It is always hard to believe that the courageous step is so close to us, that it is closer than we ever could imagine, that in fact, we already know what it is, and that the step is simpler, more radical than we had thought: which is why we so often prefer the story to be more elaborate, our identities clouded by fear, the horizon safely in the distance, the essay longer than it needs to be and the answer safely in the realm of impossibility...