Boxing Day

December 26th is Boxing Day
in many countries of the world.
There are several theories
behind the origin of Boxing Day.
One is that servants were given
boxes of gifts or bonuses or leftover food
as a reward for helping
their wealthy master’s Christmas celebrations
run smoothly.

I use Boxing Day
as a day to cleanse from the year previous.
I get rid of items I don’t need.
I eliminate tasks I don’t need to do.
I shrug off grudges.
I discard unhealthy, permanently broken relationships.
I leave behind
anything from the year before
that I don’t want to take forward
into the next.

This leaves empty spaces
that I can fill with
new habits
and goals
and relationships.
It prepares me for the brand new year.

Look around you.
What do you need for 2011?
Anything you don’t need
(physically, mentally, emotionally),
consider leaving behind.
Box it up and put it away.