What You Don’t Have to Carry Into This Year

I want to share something personal with you.

Earlier this week, I caught up with a close friend — the kind of friend who knows your history, your seasons, your pauses. We hadn’t seen each other for a while, and somewhere between the coffee refills and the laughter, we started talking about the time that had passed. That naturally led us back into parts of 2025.

And I realised something about myself.

There were moments from last year I was still carrying.
The should-haves.
The things I didn’t do.
The versions of myself I kept replaying, wondering how I could have done them better.

I hadn’t noticed the weight until I named it.

And here’s what I want you to know — unlike me, you don’t have to carry last year into this one.

Not the disappointments.
Not the plans that didn’t unfold the way you hoped.
Not the version of yourself that was simply trying to survive, get through, or hold it together.

Last year may have shaped you —
But it doesn’t get to define what comes next.

Letting go doesn’t mean forgetting what mattered.
It doesn’t mean pretending it didn’t hurt or that it wasn’t important.

It means loosening your grip on what no longer needs to be replayed, rehashed, or relived.

You’re allowed to start this year lighter.

Not because everything is perfectly resolved —
But because you don’t need to keep holding what’s already done.

This work, this journey of self-discovery, isn’t about fixing yourself.
It’s about choosing what you carry forward — intentionally, gently, honestly.

So I’ll ask you the same question I asked myself:

What are you ready to leave behind?

Jo

Founder, WAY