Letting Go of 2025

It's the start of a new year and so time for my annual year-end (letting go of the previous year) post! I most often write them at the end of the previous year (and publish them on New Year's Eve), but I didn't manage to get this one done in time. I did include a quick section in my December Gratitude List post though:

Gratitude List + Year-End Thoughts (2025): https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2025/12/gratitude-list-year-end-thoughts-2025.html 

 

So now I'm doing my letting go post  at the start of the new year instead. I've written letting go posts for the past 8 years. You can see them at the links below:

Letting Go of 2017: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2017/12/letting-go-of-2017.html

Letting Go of 2018: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2018/12/letting-go-of-2018.html

Letting Go of 2019 + Starting a New Decade: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2019/12/letting-go-of-2019-starting-new-decade.html

Letting Go of 2020: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2020/12/letting-go-of-2020.html

Letting Go of 2021: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2021/12/letting-go-of-2021.html

Letting Go of 2022: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2023/01/letting-go-of-2022.html

Letting Go of 2023: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2023/12/letting-go-of-2023.html

Letting Go of 2024: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2024/12/letting-go-of-2024.html

 

The first half of 2024 was quite difficult for me, due to personal issues and also having a hard time with anxiety (specifically health anxiety). I also write a mid-year reflections post and I mentioned it in that post and also linked to some resources to help people with health anxiety. You can see the post here: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2025/06/mid-2025-reflections.html

I usually mention numerology in these posts. If you follow that, the Universal Year Number was 9, which signalled the end of a cycle, completion and closure. So 2026's is 1, the start of a new cycle (which will last for another 9 years). Themes include new beginnings, change and release. You can read more about it here: https://astrostyle.com/2026-numerology-1-universal-year-predictions/

 My Personal Year Number for 2025 for 4, which is about steady work and hard progress. So for 2026 it's 5, which is about change and freedom. A bit more inspiring than last year's, I suppose! I normally use the book 21st Century Goddess for my year number, but I also use this resource occasionally (it helps you calculate your personal year): https://feliciabender.com/monthly-numerology-forecast/#calculate

 

Reflections

I continued going to Happy Cafe meetups (part of Action for Happiness) during 2025. I also went to the park more regularly for sabbats/seasonal festivals (which I started to do in 2024). It was nice to get back to a bit more of a routine of going to the park again. I write about seasonal events on my seasonal living blog The Seasonal Life.

I didn't do much belly dancing again, apart from going to a show in the summer (I also went to it last year), where I danced a bit at the end when the audience joined in.

In November and December, I did a Mental Health Toolkit course at my local mental health resource centre. I hadn't done a course for a few years, so it was good to get back to that.  

I write quarterly updates on The Seasonal Life (TSL). You can see my summer-autumn 2025 update here and links to the previous 2025 posts here (I haven't written the autumn-winter one yet): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2025/10/summer-autumn-update-2025-happy.html 

Here on Falling Petals, I wrote less posts than I did last year (14 rather than 17), despite saying I wanted to be more active here! But never mind. I don't think it's good to put pressure on myself, or beat myself up about it. 

I mainly wrote my monthly gratitude lists (a couple of times with an extra section added)  but also the mid-year reflections post and one other one- Does Manifesting Really Work?. I have been posting more regularly on TSL and my entertainment blog Star Sparkle Blog though.

In April, I will celebrate 15 years of Star Sparkle (the first blog I created). FP and TSL will both be 13 years old this year.  I would like to post more regularly on Falling Petals during 2026 but I'm not going to put pressure on myself.

I used to write a bit about world news here but there just seems a lot of negativity, so I think I'll leave it this year. 

The past couple of years haven't been that great, so I hope that this one is better.

Last year, I shared a video with a New Year reflection process from Aileen of Lavndaire. I thought I'd link it again in this post: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXMWrvLomf0

 

Releasing

I mentioned in last year's post that I often feel stuck in negative patterns (especially with my mental health) and jut stck in general, and that I'd like to release that. I still feel that those are things I need to let go of. 

Online negativity is another thing I'd like to release this year. It's very easy to get pulled down a "rabbit hole" of negativity, on social media in particular. It's very easy to say things online that you wouldn't say in person and some people can be really nasty!

Dominee from Self-Love Rainbow has a couple of posts about making your social media a more positive place:

Social Media Shouldn't Make You Feel Like Sh*t: https://www.selfloverainbow.com/social-media-shouldnt-make-you-feel-like-sht

How To Do A Social Media Inventory: https://www.selfloverainbow.com/how-to-do-a-social-media-inventory 

 

I've previously written about ways to release your year. You can find them in the links at the top of the post, or by clicking here, here, here and here. 

Also, here is Susannah Conway's annual resource for looking back on your year and planning for the new one ,the Unravel our Year workbork (sign up fior free to download it: https://susannah-conway.kit.com/f7ccb776d4

I have done this before, although not every year that I've shared it. I haven't done it so far but might later. The download also includes an e-book for finding your Word of the Year (see below for more on that).

 

Resolutions/Intentions/Goals

I've previously written about making/setting resolutions, intentions and goals (and the difference between them all). For more on that, check out my past posts Letting Go of 2017 and Letting Go of 2018.

I'm not currently setting any concrete resolutions or intentions etc. I'll see how I feel later. 

Some people like to choose a Word of the Year as an alternative to (or in addition to) making resolutions or setting intentions. For more on that, visit my Letting Go of 2023 post (see under the Resolutions/Intentions/Goals section): https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2023/12/letting-go-of-2023.html

I have done this some years. Last year I wasn't sure what my "word" should be but then picked "Fun". However, 2025 didn't turn out to be a very fun year for me! So I'm really not sure if I'll pick one yet. 

If you'd like some to pick one yourself, here are some links with inspiration for choosing your word: 

Post about how to choose a Word of the Year from Diana of The Chic Life: https://thechiclife.com/2025/03/how-to-choose-word-of-the-year.html

Word of the Year Ideas (The Chic Life): https://thechiclife.com/2025/04/word-of-the-year-ideas.html

My Word-of-the-Year for 2026 (Self-Love Rainbow): https://www.selfloverainbow.com/my-word-of-the-year-for-2026/  

 

I've previously shared some links from Self-Love Rainbow about choosing a word see the "Word of the Year" link above or click here and the Letting Go of 2023 post. Dominee (who runs the site) also has a mini guidebook to help you choose one. I haven't bought it but I have her Self-Love Rainbow Workbook which I recommend. If you'd like to get the workbook, here's the link: https://store.selfloverainbow.com/products/word-of-the-year-mini-guidebook-goals-37254

 

Finally, here are a few more links with ideas for resetting for the new year or taking a different, slower approach: 

2026 Goals New Year Planning & Goal Setting (video from Lavendaire): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXMWrvLomf0

Diana from TCL's New Year Reset: https://thechiclife.com/2026/01/my-actual-new-year-reset-2026-to-start-the-new-year-strong.html 

don't start over in 2026..do this instead (video by KristiDoingThings with a calmer way to reset your life): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5CqpaBfW-c

The Witch's Slow Month: Rituals for Rest, Not Resolutions: https://www.flyingthehedge.com/2026/01/rituals-for-rest-not-resolutions.html 

 

So that's it for now. I hope that everyone is doing well and that your year has started off well. If not, I hope that it gets better. :) Hopefully you found this post useful foe letting go of 2025 and moving into 2026 (even if you're later doing that like me/still in the process).

How was your 2025/ Wishing you a lovely year ahead! :) 

 

Photo: Hove Park. Moonsparkle 2025.