The Wild Freedom of the Year of the Fire Horse
If you have been around me lately, you have undoubtedly heard me wax poetic about the lunar new year and our transition into the year of the Fire Horse. I’m sure my husband could do with a little less of me on this topic. But I have been so excited, absolutely lit up by what we are going through as individuals.
We have been in a year of the Wood Snake. Meaning that we have been doing the hard work of growth, of shedding layers and the things that no longer serve us. The wood aspect of the year shows up for me as this deep foundational growth of our roots. The things that are going to support us going foward in a way that will be safe and grounded. The snake is the beauty of seeing what is ending while also opening us up for what is to come in the rebirth.
On February 17th, we usher in the year of the Fire Horse. It is an energy that is rapid and action packed. Imagine a wild horse running free through the plains in pure joy. It is not running from something, nor is it running to a destination. It is simply feeling the joy that comes from using it’s body for what it was meant to do. For me, this year is about finding a new level of depth, of authenticity, of knowing who I am and showing up as simply that. Not running from something or to anywhere in particular. Just showing up as the best version of me that I can be in this moment and knowing that it more than enough. There is a deep freedom in letting go of becoming something or anything other than you are in this moment.
That strength that the horse possesses, is a deep self-knowing. It is strong enough to run free, while also able to hold it’s own to heal others. It can carry our burdens (literally carrying us on their backs) and regulate our nervous systems (think horse therapy). It is strong enough that it can be all of these things in one single body, choosing when to show up as what version of itself. There is no limit to what it can be, holding all possibilities at once and highlighting or expressing itself as it pleases.
As excited as I am about the transformations that are happening at a personal level, I also hold the heartbreak about what is happening at the collective level. Tapping into the personal evolution that is happening helps me to view our world and local events through this same lense. This past year, the snake brought in death and destruction of our structures and beliefs. While much of what is happening right now is not how any of us envisioned change to happen, whether we like it or not, change is happening in this unimaginable way. We have moved out of the foundational beliefs that we once held and a world order in emerging that many of us never thought and hoped wouldn’t be possible. Yet in this dismantling of many of the tenets that were the foundation of our country, it has spurred us all to take a deeper look at our beliefs and morals. What do we find acceptable? How far will we let the violence and oppression get before we take a stand? What does taking a stand even look like in today’s world?
These questions that we are being forced to ask ourselves and face are the questions that are feeding the growth. The wood elements comes in regrowing our roots, re-evaluating what our foundation truly is. This growth is not flashy. Roots grow underground, unseen to the eye. We, as a collective and society, are growing and changing in ways that we cannot see now. That may not be obvious. But what comes from that growth and change in our foundation is going to be something big. A tectonic shift in how we engage with each other and hopefully a new found respect for all people. A dismantling of many of the horrible things our country was originally built on and a rebuilding with equity and compassion.
So while I hold the heartbreak, I also hold hope for our future. That the year of the fire horse will help usher our collective into something new. That it supports us as individuals to take bold action. To know where, what, and how to change our world for the better.