Imperative Impermanence

2026Q1 Reflections (TCL)

This post is part two of two - my reflections on this quarter. I used to be someone who doesn't do quarterly reflections. But as I mentioned in part one, "this year is turning out to be fast-paced more so than the past years I've had, I felt the need to do a quarterly wrap". So I'm now someone who does quarterly reflections.

Index:



What Q1 showed me

Planning is a great tool — a framework, an anchor to focus on in a sea of possibilities. It helps when the horizon ahead feels like a blank void, or fogged up and too vast to know where to even begin. Because at the end of the day, I want my effort and process to matter, not getting lost in empty doing, which would just be a waste of energy and time.

I accomplished and reached the “places” and pit-stops I had set out for from December to February. An unexpected opportunity came through in March, so the month became more of a spontaneous reroute from what I had initially planned. Out of the three intentions / focus / goals I had for March, I only met one. But when I reviewed the month, I realised that that one goal was what truly mattered to me — and it refined itself as I moved through it. This is the active–receptive, co-creative process of moving with my life and my energy.

I see that my quarterly anchor stated: “…my victories are the celebration of each step and decision I take towards my goals — not the actual goal or outcome itself.” And how true that feels.

I created what I had planned — focusing my attention on writing and publishing five Instagram posts and five blog posts — on top of practising floral design, freelancing, supporting my bestie through long-distance calls, spring cleaning the entire house, and taking care of my body and everyday life.

I remember when I was meditating and planning for 2026, Q1 had the clearest vision and direction. That’s something I deeply appreciate and celebrate: the creative clarity that was available to me. Q2, on the other hand, felt up in the air. I’m learning to trust that, week by week, the steps will reveal themselves as I continue moving forward in the present moment — because that’s all that really matters in this season of my life.

As long as I keep moving my body, my energy, and build momentum, clarity is bound to appear. It is just like what someone once said: movement builds momentum, action creates clarity. And as my energy healer says: the more we create, the more our energy fields expand and grow, pulling our manifestations into the material plane.

A few key lessons also became clear.

What Q1 taught me

You really just have to keep moving and not dwell too long in “feeling.”

It does make me wonder how different my season of life might have been if my parent had passed away last year instead — because the grief cycle I moved through over the past two years was actually very aligned with the collective energy of endings.

The sooner you can let things go, accept, and move forward, the better it is for the momentum you’re building this year.

Not dwelling on mistakes — we tend to spiral in them for too long, often because of our early experiences in life. I can only speak for myself: mine wasn’t rooted in trauma, but in childhood conditioning that I now get to clear away the 'gunk' with the help of working with my energy healer and growing wisdom.

Wisdom is when knowledge or self-awareness is applied in practice. Self-awareness alone is not enough. Very often, it gets stuck at the stage of realisation. The loop needs to be closed by committing and applying it in real life. What are you going to do with what you now know?

Stay focused on what matters most to you.

You need to define that clearly enough (not perfectly). But also, don’t over-prepare. That clarity will refine itself over time. If you try to get 100% clear from the start, you risk becoming over-attached. And that creates resistance to what something is actually meant to become — which is often different (and way better) from what you could ever have imagined.

I’m also noticing where I’m still being stretched.

What I am still… overcoming

1/ Sleep procrastination = energy debt (as bad as, or worse than, credit card interest)

During busier periods, when I don’t get enough time to unwind before I even feel tired, I need the discipline to remind myself: when the rest, recharge, and recovery period comes, I will get to enjoy those bedtime pleasures.

So don’t push the body and mind. Sleep when it calls for it — at the first wave of sleepiness. I have to remember not to procrastinate sleep this way, because I will definitely pay for the accumulated energy and sleep debt for days after.

2/ Navigating social settings “in the wild” & relearning how to be part of the world

As I interact with more people and step outside my home more in this season, I’m noticing my freeze + fawn responses in high-tension moments, especially when I make “mistakes.”

I’m learning that I have to be the one to give myself permission and grace. To make those mistakes, to move through them, and to have the self-compassion to learn from and get over them, even if it affects or upsets someone else. This is part of life. This is part of being alive.

I reflect on how, within systems we grew up in, we learned that it wasn’t safe to make mistakes — and how that quietly carries into adulthood unless we consciously unlearn it. It is still prevalent in the 'grown up' world. But it's up to me to respond and learn from mistakes with grace.

Having had the privilege of working from home in solitude for five years, this isn’t exactly a shock to my system. It feels more like an ongoing unraveling I’m noticing over time, usually after the moment has passed. So the timing to 'correct' this aspect, often physiological, in the moment still leaves much to be supportive and helpful. It doesn’t happen every day, just in occasional moments — which I’m also grateful.

And then when I zoom out from all of this, what I keep coming back to is something much simpler.

An attitude of gratitude

Initially, I did some planning and research on how to approach quarterly reflections. But I couldn’t get on board with what I found. It felt too complicated, too focused on the mental plane.

So I went back to my roots. My essence. And remembered that to simplify is to amplify. That all I really needed to focus on was one simple thing: gratitude.

I asked myself: What are the things, experiences, encounters, lessons, insights, and people I feel genuinely grateful for in this quarter?

And this is what surfaced. My list, summarised from the full journal entry and adapted for sharing (I'm someone who's also now learning to externally express my internal appreciation and gratitude):

1. Me

I recognise how much further I’ve stretched with myself - in spirit, mind, and body. Moving beyond what has felt comfortable for a while. Choosing to just do it, even when I felt resistance or nervousness.

And as a result, I’ve already accomplished most of what I had set my sights on for 2026 in just this first quarter.

2. My BFF Amanda & our energy healer Lika

They keep me tethered — anchored in being and growing into my becoming, without getting lost in the sea of everyday mundane life. They are part of my root support system.

I also acknowledge the support I feel from the unseen — the quantum field, the behind-the-scenes spiritual realm.

3. Carol & Frank

Carol, for giving me the opportunity to learn with her and 'The Studio' team — for letting me experience the rhythm of studio life, observe the creative process, and train my creating “muscles” in a very well cared for, shared working environment.

Frank, for his guidance — for creating opportunities for me to try, and for explaining the reasoning behind things in a way that makes the intention behind the logic clear.

4. The little things in daily life — micro-doses of joy, love, and pleasure

The quiet foundations of a life built on love:

So there we have it. Quarter One of 2026 - experienced, felt, and completed.

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P.S. To read through a compilation highlights and interesting texts (to me) that I had no recollection of noting down or writing for throughout this first quarter: 2026Q1 FIELD NOTES (TCL)

Gardening Notes
Total writing time: 9 hours 46 minutes
Cultivation period: 3 Apr - 19 Apr 2026 (17 days)
Resonance/Vitality: 90%
Moon Cycles: New Moon in Aries (April 2026)

#This-Cosmic-Life