Life is hard….

And it gets harder with ages.

But it should get easier.

Think about it. We have been living for x amount of years. Each year provides a set of experiences, which result in outcomes, that we call lessons. X amount of lessons in one year, multiplied by your age, equals several lessons that we can now call wisdom. More wisdom, should equal an easier life. But sometimes the equation does not add up. Often times we feel stuck, lost or battle with life.

Life challenges us in ways that we feel we can not prevent or control. However, there are experiences in our life that we could prevent, but we often don’t. Life truly is easier then we make it.

The more I speak honestly about any aspect of my life, the easier it is for me to be honest with myself and others. I have always been honest, but I I rarely spoke and I was often silent as a young girl. When I did not have anything nice to say, I said nothing. Plus, I was shy.

My approach to life has shifted, since my voice class two years ago. I now speak honestly with love always. Even when I have nothing nice to say, I still speak honestly with love. I had many “hard” conversations this year and I do not regret anything I’ve said because it was said with love and it needed to be said. It is possible to address real issues honestly, but the best way to do so is to speak with love. We aren’t trying to speak to hurt others, but to help others and ourselves. Other times we fear judgement or loss which can keep us in a rut that is not serving us.

Life challenged me each month. I was asked to be honest with myself or my emotions to keep the status quo or change the current situation I experienced. The only way around each challenge was complete honesty. I choose to change the status quo each time to prevent future heartache or upset. Each decision was not easy, but it was easier knowing that I was changing a future outcome. Moving on can be hard at times, but growth is a part of life.

And sometimes to grow fully we must shed not only our skin, but relationships, careers, locations that hinder our growth.

This Christmas I had a hard time finding Christmas spirit, because I let go of a lot this year and I felt each loss. I saw the good of the year around my birthday, but I could not see the good a week ago. My sight was clouded by an emotion I was feeling and needed to address. Once I addressed the emotion to myself and others, the weight of the emotion was lifted and I saw the good again.

We often clutter our life with people, activities or thoughts that cloud our perspective and misdirect us towards undesired challenges.

This year life helped me to be honest with myself regardless of the outcome that I wanted and helped me clear the clutter from my life so I could see clearer and live better. The lighter life gets, the easier it is to be honest to yourself and others and express gratitude and experience joy.

Is life hard? Or are you making life hard? Are you happy? Or are you pretending to be happy? When was the last time you were happy? What are some steps you can take towards your growth in the new year?