There's the standard fare of black-eyed peas (the edible version you stir in a pot) and greens. Opening and closing a door to let out the old, jumping from a perch at midnight to leap into the new….And while I usually incorporate those fun things into the dawn of my new year traditions, I also incorporate two others.

Burning bowl, Leisa A.Hammett

I was in my late 20s, living in Atlanta, when I first heard about The Burning Bowl ceremony observed by Unity churches across the country. But it was a decade-and-half later, in 2003, before I attended my first and have continued almost every year since then. In essence, you write down all the things in your life you wish to discard and be done with and then you burn that list. At Unity of Nashville, burning bowl service,  attendees then write a letter to themselves as if it were the end of the year, congratulating themselves for all the things they have manifested in their lives. The church mails the letter in the self-addressed envelope at the end of the year and it is amazing to see what the spirit of intention can manifest. This year's service was done more Taize style and I found it to the most moving burning bowl service I had attended. Maybe it was in part that I was so ready to release and start anew. I left feeling purged and cleansed.

II felt the same at the end of Sunday, when I created a trilogy of vision boards to manifest three main things in my life this coming year. In 2007, a climatic year in my life, I created my first vision board. Before I even pasted down the image of New York City I felt compelled to place into my career section, something incredible happened….Every year since I've either attended an artist friend's vision board party or created my own alone. This year I hosted a small gathering of friends in my home. Between clipping, pasting and arranging, we sipped mimosas and fed our souls with friendship and steaming bowls of black-eyed peas and chopped kale. I generally "feng shui" mine, clustering certain things I wish to manifest in my life into certain areas on the poster board. Again, I have been amazed that often up to nearly 90 percent of what I intend to create, big and small, manifests. It's about the power of intention, of creative thought, of Believing. I generally put mine in my kitchen in a very visible spot, such as the cupboard next to the fridge where I reach for my drinking glasses so that each time it is in my visual field, I either consciously or unconsciously am reminded about what it is that I am choosing to create. My goals have ranged from love relationships, travel, things for my daughter, career achievements, small material items, etc. 

However you mark the beginning of this New Year, I wish it to be full of Peace, Joy, Love, Happiness and Abundance for you. I'd love to hear your traditions here in the blog comments! 2012 is going to be phenomenal! I'm convinced!