Embracing Duality | The Beauty in Endings and Beginnings
Isn’t it ironic how the end of something always leads to the beginning of something else? It feels so obvious when you say it out loud—just as 2024 has to end for 2025 to begin. Of course.
But what really happens at the end of a year or a season? How do you feel when you finish a great book or pack your bags on the last day of vacation? If you’re anything like me, the closing of a chapter can feel bittersweet—like a loss. Inaccessible. Archived. Ready-or-not, complete.
And yet, that finality stands in stark contrast to the exhilaration of something new: inviting, expansive, energizing, thrilling.
This juxtaposition fascinates me. The straightforward truth that “every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end” (thank you, Seneca), is deceptively simple. But the lesson is profound.
An end is also a beginning.
Two things can be true at the same time.
Maybe you’ve felt this duality in your own life:
Loss can be grieved while holding onto hope.
Disappointment can walk hand-in-hand with determination.
Independence can strengthen, not weaken, commitment.
If you’ve experienced any of these truths, I hope they’ve reminded you of life’s rich tapestry—how it often presents us with paradoxes to navigate. And in those moments, we have a choice: to resist, to feel overwhelmed, to focus only on the hard parts...or to lean in and welcome the complexity and let it expand us.
As we close out this year and step into a new one, I encourage you to be curious about the challenging stuff that shows up. Look for ways to pair it with tolerance, acceptance, maybe even hope. Because when we embrace duality, we give ourselves the gift of connection, growth, and meaning—deeper relationships, richer experiences, a fuller life.
That’s my wish for you this new year and beyond: one beautiful, fulfilling life.
Because let’s face it—life is the one precious thing we don’t get two of, certainly not at the same time.
With love and gratitude for the stories you’ve shared with me this year—and for the chance to share a little of mine with you.