The Year Of The Horse: Momentum In Motion (Part 2)

**Part 1 audio recording is available in my teacher profile. This is a past Insight Timer Live Session recording for those that missed the live session. Please note the recording quality and background noise may be higher than normal due to the live format*

On the 16th February, we gathered at the turning point of the Lunar Year, formally closing 2025, the Year of the Snake, and welcoming 2026, the Year of the Horse. We honoured the Snake’s lessons of shedding, strategy, and inner transformation, consciously releasing what no longer serves you. This live webinar was both a closing ritual and an activation, designed to help step into the Year of the Horse feeling clear, energized, and ready to move forward with confidence, freedom, and purpose. Please bring a pen and journal.

Transcript

Hello and welcome.

I hope everyone is having a great start to 2026.

Some of you may have not met me before.

My name is Dr.

Megan Kirk-Chang and I've been with Insight Timer as a teacher for about five years now.

Really started at the beginning of the pandemic.

I really wanted to bring the science that I was working on to the masses in a more palatable way because sometimes I find in academia we overemphasize the scientific terminology and I'm really passionate about bringing concepts around healing from trauma,

Grief,

PTSD to to folks in a way that makes sense and is meaningful.

Not always riddled with statistics and numbers and you know it makes it not that accessible.

So accessibility is something that I'm really passionate about and so I found Insight Timer one of the best ways to bring some of that work to communities across the globe.

So I'm really grateful that you're here and if you haven't had a chance definitely take some time to check out my teacher profile.

A lot of my work centers around mental well-being and navigating just showing up as your full self as you're going through perhaps tough seasons in your life and so with that in mind I am so excited for this session.

Some of you may have been here a month ago or about five weeks ago when I did a session on the year of the snake and how we had five weeks or so remaining of the year of the snake according to the Chinese or Lunar New Year calendar and we are today at the last day of the year of the snake and we are preparing to enter a new lunar new year tomorrow which is the year of the fire horse and so this topic really means a lot to me for multiple reasons.

I really found the symbolism this year in particular around what the year of the snake symbolizes and what's to come with the year of the fire horse really meaningful in my life personally and for some of you who might not know my husband and his family really honors the Lunar New Year and we had some beautiful conversations around Christmas time around what it means to to be going through the year of the snake.

I remember back in December I was finding it difficult to welcome the Gregorian calendar the January 1st New Year because I felt like I wasn't ready yet and we had this rich conversation around well that makes sense if you are thinking about the year of the snake because we're not through this year of shedding and letting go and releasing.

I asked folks who came to the last session and if you came to the last session definitely show a hand up in the chat or let me know that you were here.

I asked folks who came to the last session to take action over the next five weeks on what is it that you were going to shed or let go of.

If you remember that session I'd love to know in the chat what was it over the last four to five weeks that you let go of,

You released,

You softened.

I'd love to hear that because I remember saying I'm gonna hold you to that action piece at the next session.

So awesome to see so many people return and thank you again.

I know there's multiple things that you could be choosing to do tonight or today and so being here just means so much to me.

So we have a jam-packed session so a couple of things before we begin.

Probably a good idea to grab a journal or a notebook,

A pen or pencil,

Whatever you feel comfortable with.

I'm gonna invite reflection tonight so sometimes that stirs up different emotions so think about what makes your environment more comfortable.

So maybe you want to grab a glass of water or put on your comfy slippers or socks or have a blanket around you.

If you feel like there's an object that brings you comfort maybe you want to light a candle maybe you want to have a picture nearby.

Just creating that comfortable environment to reflect and really really go inwards a little bit because we're gonna reflect together and I remember last session in January just the comments were so supportive for one another and so beautiful and so just keeping that in mind as we go through this session that we're all at different stages of thinking about the Lunar New Year.

Some of you might be here not really sure if it's for you.

Some of you might be really feeling a bit of tenderness with the start of a new Lunar New Year so just in the comments keep that going.

We're all here in community.

We're all navigating our own version of hard this year and you know I always like to say in the spirit of Olympics there's no comparison Olympics.

You know your experience as you've gone through it is completely valid.

You make sense and you know let's really uphold and honor the respect and and compassion that you know we carried through over the last session.

So tonight we're going to focus on honoring the final hours of the Year of the Snake but we're not rushing forwards.

Really want to make sure that we close out the Year of the Snake properly and kind of think through what that looks like.

So a couple of things to note if you missed the first session I recorded that session and put it in my teacher profile so you might revisit it if that makes sense for you.

I'm also recording this session as well and will upload it.

Usually it takes a couple of weeks to edit and then have insight time or go through the approval process but if you miss anything just know that I am making a recording and my intention really is to have you be as present as possible.

So just know that I'm gonna record this I'm gonna upload it and you can come back to this if you think you missed something.

And then I've also scheduled out monthly sessions.

My hope is to do once a month for the entire year to check in and talk different themes around what it means to be in the Year of the Fire Horse.

So if you found value of this session you might look at the upcoming sessions in March,

April,

And May and then as I know my availability I'll continue to book those sessions throughout the remainder of the month.

So this is designed to be a series.

We build upon each session but if you can't make it to a session there will be a recording that you can listen to leading up to so that you can feel prepared and not like you're missing anything.

Okay so hopefully that's all of the housekeeping administrative pieces out of the way.

And so I just thought it would be a nice way to start this session by just taking a couple of minutes a couple of breaths to get grounded together.

I know for myself when technology doesn't work right away sometimes I can feel a little bit cluttered so I know it would be helpful for me as well to just get a little bit grounded in this moment.

So everything in this session is an invitation.

You can choose whether or not you participate and one of the things I invite you to do is if you have a candle you may wish to light one in your space but one of the things that just brings gentle connection is gently placing one hand over your heart space.

And just allowing yourself to take the eyes to a close if that feels comfortable but you don't have to.

You may wish to just drop the gaze off the tip of the nose if that feels a little bit better.

We're just gonna take a couple of breaths to arrive to our space tonight.

If you're seated in a chair perhaps you unravel the feet and just see what it feels like to plant the entire soles of both feet on the floor.

Maybe you experiment with rocking from the heels to the tips of the toes and back just sensing the feet connecting to a solid surface beneath you.

And if you're lying down you may wish to just bring some subtle movement to the toes and ankles drawing awareness down to the soles of the feet.

So often in our day we spend the majority of our above the neck swirling through our thoughts and decisions and choices.

So just taking a couple of intentional breaths and bringing awareness to the feet.

And if it feels comfortable for you now drawing awareness up towards the hand-to-heart connection.

Noticing the warmth being transferred between the hand and the heart.

And perhaps noticing the subtle movement of the ribcage as you breathe in.

And noticing the movement of the ribs the chest as you breathe out.

Just bringing awareness to your own rhythm of breath.

There's no fixing required,

No changing,

Just gentle awareness.

What is true for you in this moment?

And bringing a gentle intention setting to the breath if it feels comfortable.

On your in-breath as we prepare to enter a new lunar new year breathing in a word that represents something that you'd like to cultivate or practice over the next year.

This could literally be more breath or it something like courage,

Confidence,

Pausing.

Just thinking through on the in-breath what is the word that represents something you'd like to cultivate in this year ahead.

And gently on the out-breath the exhale thinking of a word that represents what you are committing to release tonight,

Committing to let go,

To soften and not carry forward into the year ahead.

And that could be anything that means something to you.

There's no right or wrong,

Just what's true for you in this moment.

Breathing in the word you want to cultivate,

Breathing out what you want to release and soften.

Beautiful.

And you can spend as much time as you'd like in this gentle connecting practice.

It doesn't have to be large breaths,

It doesn't have to be long-term.

We can just do three to five breaths together if that's what feels right for you in the moment.

And just setting those intentional words can really help set yourself up for the day ahead,

For the month ahead.

So I'd love to know in the chat what were some of the words that came up.

So on the in-breath what did you want to cultivate and on the out-breath what is it that you're committing to releasing.

So for myself over this next new year,

The word that came to mind for me was courage.

I think courage in my voice,

Courage in action,

And then my exhale was releasing imposter syndrome.

I think sometimes I can get myself in my own way and that imposter syndrome comes up really,

Really loud sometimes.

So let's go to the chat.

We see somebody,

Christie's inhaling trust and exhaling doubt.

I love that.

Robin,

Inhale breath.

Yeah,

Exhale easeful presence.

I love that.

I think such a simple reminder that our breath is always available to us is so powerful.

So thank you for sharing all that.

Helen,

Yours is courage as well.

Amazing.

All right,

Light and darkness,

Faith and self-doubt.

I love that.

So lots of similarities collectively as a group.

I think what I'm seeing in the last session and here today is like we're ready.

We are ready to transition out of perhaps a really tough year and really be ready for opportunity,

To be ready for the magic to potentially happen in the year ahead.

So the Chinese zodiac,

I won't go into too too much detail,

But this is really,

You know,

It's over 4,

000 years old,

This calendar system,

And it's based on such beautiful Eastern wisdom where it tracks time through symbolism of animals and what they represent,

Through the elements like fire,

Water,

Air,

And through different energetic cycles.

And the lunar calendar moves in years.

It speaks less about who are you,

Sort of more like the astrological signs.

It's less about that.

It still incorporates some of that.

But what the Lunar New Year really is about is thinking about what season of energy are we collectively living inside right now?

And within that question of what is the season of energy that we're collectively inside,

What am I being called to discover and learn about in this season?

And so the zodiac tracks timing,

It looks at momentum,

It's really about energetic seasons of life.

It's not personality work.

It's not about predicting based on your personality what's happening.

This is more seasonal work.

And so when I think of the Year of the Snake,

I'm not sure about folks how they felt over the last year,

But the season of the Year of the Snake has been collectively quite challenging and really drawing inwards into more dark or avoided spaces of our life.

So that energetic season can sometimes feel a bit heavy for folks.

We might feel like really lethargic in the Year of the Snake,

But that is serving a purpose.

There's something to be discovered in that type of energetic season.

So if I ask you,

What has this last year,

What has the season felt like for you?

Definitely put in the chat,

What is the Year of the Snake this last year really felt like for you?

If you can sum up collectively the last 12 months,

What does that feel like?

Does it feel like you've been shedding?

Does it feel like you've been in a bit of a drought or liminal space?

Does it feel like you've been becoming and growing?

There's no wrong answers.

Just want to collectively see what folks are feeling.

So Angie says,

Dark,

Shedding old skin.

Yeah.

Mary Pat,

Exhausting.

The hustle.

Dark and difficult.

Lots of grief.

Heavy and aware.

Oh,

I love that.

Those can coexist.

Absolutely.

Stagnant,

Fulfillment,

Change.

Absolutely.

All of these are such beautiful reflections.

And again,

There's no one right way to feel.

But we talked last day about what the symbolism of the Year of the Snake really has been about.

So some of you have alluded to this.

It's been a year of shedding.

And someone said stagnant.

And I know for me,

I have felt I've been in the waiting a lot this last year.

It's sort of been this middle space where I'm like,

Come on,

I want to get that traction going.

And that's not a wrong,

Bad place to be.

I think there's something to be discovered in how do you navigate the season of waiting or pause or stagnation.

So,

You know,

For lack of better words,

2025,

The Year of the Snake was not meant to be easy for any of us.

So if you felt like this was a really hard year,

If you felt like I'm exhausted,

This was what the season was calling us to feel.

So this last year was really a year of shedding.

It was a year of truths being surfaced and being revealed,

Where you can no longer avoid facing something.

This last year was about endings without immediate answers.

So a lot of folks said it was a season of grief.

It was a season of very slow healing,

Carrie says,

Not a gentle year.

Bev says it was debilitating.

So this is part of that collective energetic season that we've been in.

This all makes a lot of sense.

This year has been one of stillness.

If you think of a snake symbolically,

There is a lot of inner,

They start to coil inwards.

And that means there's a lot of stillness and that can feel like stagnation.

But the invitation to think about is in the stillness and the stagnation,

Was there actually something to be discovered in that?

Sometimes we need to get still and quiet and slow down in order to understand what's going to catapult us next.

And that's sometimes difficult depending on your context and circumstance.

And I don't want to bypass any of that at all,

But just think through that maybe we might be perceiving stagnation or the waiting or the pause as a negative when it actually was around the alchemy of creating the right way to move forwards.

I'm trying to look at it that way despite also having moments where I've been very frustrated with what this last year has been.

And so the snake says,

As we close out this year,

I was not here to destroy your life.

The snake says,

I was not here to destroy your life.

I was here to dismantle the one that you've outgrown.

I was not here to destroy your life.

I was here to dismantle the one that you've outgrown.

So thinking through,

Maybe there's some old narratives or old patterns that you've outgrown now and it's time to recognize that.

The snake closed the doors on what's no longer aligned with your highest power,

Highest good,

And highest potential.

And so the year of the snake is about stripping you back to that raw,

Real,

Authentic version of yourself.

And that can feel so uncomfortable.

That can feel very vulnerable.

And I think collectively,

We don't always know how to sit in vulnerability that easily because it feels like your nerve endings are exposed.

I know sometimes for me,

I just wish the answer was so clear,

But I'm trying to think about the energetic season in a different way.

And maybe it's forcing me to think a little bit more creatively about the path that I want to forge.

So that can be difficult,

Especially when we're used to our own patterns.

Now would be a good time to get your journal out,

Pen and paper,

Or feel free to put in the chat if that's the best way for you to journal.

So what did you shed this year?

When you think back over the year and you think about the snake who was really preparing you for better alignment and stripping you back to what's real and true,

What did you shed this year?

And while we're still in the final hours,

What are you committing to shedding?

The year of the snake is about forcing you to face truths,

To let go of things that aren't serving you.

Last session,

I talked about this idea of outdated narratives that we hold about ourselves.

I remember somebody in the chat said that they were reactive and angry and really struggled in relationships.

And so this idea of really looking inwards to say,

What am I telling myself about myself that maybe is getting in my own way of connection and relationship and belonging?

What did you shed this year?

So Ingrid,

Taking care of others first,

Putting yourself last because you're strong.

Oh girlfriend,

My hands are two hands way up high on that one.

Putting my health first has been something I've prioritized and shedding this idea that I need to please everyone else before I give myself permission to do that.

I love that you said that.

It makes me feel less alone.

Monica,

You are cleaning and donating physical stuff.

You've been at it all week.

Yeah.

And it's been said that your external environment reflects your internal state.

So I think decluttering our physical space and creating a sense of calm or order or whatever that is for you in your space.

Some people put a fresh coat of paint on their rooms or get new flooring.

All of that is around this idea of decluttering and creating home for yourself.

Sarah,

You got a divorce.

You stopped being a people pleaser.

That takes a lot of courage.

I'm sure that was not an easy decision and took a lot to get to.

That's absolutely part of the year of the snake is letting go of relationships.

Not that there wasn't love there,

But letting go of relationships that are instead of energy filling or energy draining or you know aren't right.

How often do we sit with what feels like a full body yes versus a full body no?

And we say yes because we don't want to let people down without really thinking through,

Is this going to help fuel me or is this going to drain me?

So really good example.

Love this.

You all came to take this start to the new year very seriously.

I'm loving all of the chats.

All right,

So your first journal prompt is what did you shed this year?

The second journal prompt is what relationships,

Attachments,

Or identities needed to end for you this year?

And some of those are by choice and some of those happened outside of your control.

So what relationships,

Attachments,

Or identities ended?

Elaine,

Grief of losing your husband after 10 years and you no longer feel like a wife.

Yeah,

Huge identity shift.

There's an ending there and there's a beginning in a new identity for sure.

Tanya says the relationship with my parents that I needed but will never get.

And the year of the snake might really be about letting go of that attachment to wishing for what might never be and moving into that acceptance stage.

It's tough.

I mean,

My gosh,

Not easy stuff.

Stacey ended a relationship to a toxic maternal figure and I'm sure Stacey that took a long time and a lot of swirl in the mind of what do you do?

What do you say?

How do you do this?

What a beautiful way in the year of the snake to honor the ending of that relationship.

And it's complex,

Right?

It comes with feelings of you know it's right but then it can be coupled with guilt.

It can be coupled with feeling like you're questioning yourself.

It's very complex but thank you for sharing that.

The third question is where were you forced into stillness this year?

Where were you forced into quote-unquote stagnation or the pause or the liminal space?

This middle space where you tap into your inner wisdom and your intuition which can take a little while.

So where were you forced into stillness?

And then the final question is what truth became undeniable for you?

What truth became undeniable for you?

So question one,

What did you shed this year?

Question two,

What relationships,

Attachments,

Or identities ended?

Question three,

What forced you into stillness?

And question four,

What truth became undeniable for you that you could no longer ignore,

Push away,

Not address?

And so I remember last day some folks talked about recognizing that their work environment was no longer sustainable for their well-being or divorce or maybe you need to really think about your health because your body's speaking louder and louder about paying attention to it.

So what truth for you became undeniable in this last year?

So infinite,

I am here for me.

Yeah,

That's an undeniable truth.

It doesn't have to be a I am worthy of putting my health first.

That's something that has worked for me over the last four to five months is all of a sudden I am prioritizing and giving myself permission to put my health first,

Which I didn't do.

I would have to negotiate with myself internally.

I didn't do enough work today so I don't get to do that enjoyable thing.

And I've really had to look at that and it seems so simple but when we're in our own patterns it can be really,

Really difficult to shift that.

And now it's become habit.

It took a long time,

It wasn't easy,

But now I'm like nope,

I'm prioritizing this first and then I will do my work.

I'm proud of that.

The medicine of the year of the snake isn't quite finished yet so we've got a few hours left.

We begin the new year on the 17th of February so the snake is still uncoiling,

So to speak,

And her medicine is still active so the shedding season is not quite over.

But what the year of the snake needs is your permission to finish her work.

She cannot take what you are still clinging to into the new year.

So the next three questions I'm asking you are getting you to step outside your comfort zone a little bit.

So as we talked through those beautiful four questions,

Now I want to know and think intuitively inside.

You might put your hand to your chest to just tune inwards.

What are you still gripping?

Because we're human,

Right?

We don't just magically snap our fingers and all of a sudden we know how to let go,

Release,

Shed what's no longer working for us.

We work in stages.

We usually start with the more easier ones and we peel back those layers and we get to that,

Oh,

It's a little bit uncomfortable.

So what are you still gripping to?

What belief still lives within you that needs a little bit of loosening?

And is there anything inside that you are afraid or fearful of fully releasing?

Like,

Let's get really,

Really honest with ourselves.

What are you still gripping to?

What belief within might still need a little bit of loosening?

And is there anything within you with the energy of being afraid or fearful that you are trying to fully release but you're afraid to do so?

So Aaron's saying still looking for acceptance from others and that if I show my authenticity that it will be rejected.

I wish we could have a tea because I resonate with that a lot.

Yeah,

We can say out loud,

I'm going to show up and be authentic,

But there still might be that fear within driving.

You still want that external validation.

So you're still gripping to external markers that you are okay as you are and you are worthy.

I get that completely,

Completely,

Especially in the year that I've had working through loss.

Yeah.

Fearful how your changes might impact significant others.

You might be rejected,

Not listened to or respected.

Oh,

Robin,

You are coming with a zinger.

That is so courageous to share.

And sometimes it is scary to make changes that you know are going to better yourself because you're not sure how the people in your life are going to respond to the new you or the new version of you.

And it's interesting because it raises the questions around boundary setting.

And there was a quote I heard somewhere.

Let me just think of exactly how to say it.

People who don't respect your boundaries are ones that never had them in the first place.

I might be totally butchering that.

But if people have a hard time with you making changes to better your life,

Those are the people who never respected your boundaries in the first place.

And sometimes it can be so confusing because the people closest to us have the hardest time when we make changes.

And I can't explain it.

I just know that feeling.

And so thank you for sharing that.

And so Nancy is saying fear of showing up in the world a new sovereign self-aware woman.

You've spent the last six months deeply shedding.

You're in a completely different place with your body and mind and fearful that your friends and community will still hold you as the old version of yourself.

Can we get some hands up if that resonates for anyone?

I know my two hands are way up for what Nancy has shared.

And it's interesting,

Right?

The people that are closest to us,

Family,

Friends,

Co-workers,

Can sometimes have the hardest time when we work through our own transformation.

And that's really challenging.

And what I would say to you,

Nancy,

Is just notice if as you move into this new year with that authenticity and commitment to loosening and letting go of the grip of that,

If there's still areas where you might dim your light or shrink or fall into hiding versions of yourself to keep the peace,

Because then there's still that energetic attachment there that you just might explore.

And no judgment.

Sometimes we do what we have to do to keep the peace because that's the best thing we know how.

And then sometimes we can make those choices around pivoting and letting relationships just naturally unfold the way that they're supposed to.

And sometimes that means there's distance that happens.

Sometimes it means there might be a clearing conversation.

You might find the courage to explain to someone,

Like,

I'm really working hard at bettering myself.

And it seems like you might be having a difficult time with that.

And having a clearing conversation,

It can look so many different ways.

And you just have to trust that you know what's best for you in that moment.

So lots of support in the chat for you,

Nancy.

I think that's a very real feeling for sure.

So it's really important to remember that riding into the year of the horse is not going to heal what you didn't heal in the year of the snake.

And we have to be careful with what we might still be gripping to,

What we might still be afraid to release,

Because that might unintentionally get in our way for the full momentum that the horse and the year of the horse really is about.

So it's not about getting it perfect,

Especially not in the last few hours,

But it's about an awareness.

So thinking about,

Okay,

Yeah,

I'm still gripping a little bit to this narrative or,

You know,

The belief I still have might need a little bit more loosening.

It's not about getting it perfect.

It's about the awareness.

But the year of the horse will not heal what you didn't heal in the snake.

So we just have to be careful because we can unintentionally self-sabotage.

We can unintentionally bring patterns of being into the year of the horse that stall that momentum forwards.

And the horse,

If you think about a horse,

Like it just amplifies truth.

I don't know if any of you have ever tried therapeutic horse sessions or horse therapy,

But horses have a really strong heart coherence.

They can pick up on energy,

Usually of their own herd.

But if you're doing horse therapy,

They can pick up on your own energetic presence and it will mirror back to you.

So I remember doing an equine therapy session and I was in a ring with the horse and the horse started just nibbling,

Just nibbling at my clothes and I had a stick and the facilitator was like,

You need to draw like a firm boundary.

And so I like drew a line in the sand,

But the horse just kept biting at my jacket.

And it was so interesting.

So we had to practice multiple times.

It took me several times to strongly hold firm.

Like I had to have the presence of that's not okay.

You're overstepping a boundary I have here.

You're in my personal space.

And so thinking about that example while I'm being vulnerable is boundaries.

I don't want to disappoint people.

I don't want to let people down.

I would sacrifice my own happiness if it meant I kept the peace with somebody else.

And the horse was mirroring that back to me,

This little like nitpicky crossing a boundary little by little.

And that was an interesting lesson.

So the horse really mirrors back your energetic space.

So as we wrap up and kind of close out the year of the snake,

It's okay if you're feeling anxious.

That just might allude to something is still ready and needing to be released.

It's okay if you're still feeling in the in-between.

The snake is still working.

It's okay if you don't feel ready to enter a new year.

That's your intuition speaking.

And listen to that.

So let's do a quick closing of the year of the snake before we dive into the year of the horse.

The theme of this is the final shedding.

So the invitation is to sit comfortably or lie down,

Whatever feels right for you.

And you can choose to close your eyes or drop the gaze downwards.

Something I like to do is just notice what it feels like to feel your spine upright,

Not rigid,

Not effort,

Just upright and empowered,

An empowered posture.

Just imagine that you're standing in a beautiful space,

Whatever comes to mind at twilight.

So just as the sun sets and the sky begins to darken,

Twilight blue.

And behind you,

Just visualizing the landscape of the last year.

You might see some twists and turns,

Hills and valleys,

Wildflowers,

Or bare trees.

Just visualizing the landscape of the year that you've come through.

Is there greenery?

Is there snow?

And it's okay if it's hard to visualize.

We just practice.

You can always relax.

Return to the breath.

Does the landscape of the last year look like for you?

And if it feels right for you,

Visualizing now the landscape ahead of you,

An open space not yet entered,

An open space untouched,

An open space that is welcoming you forwards,

An open space in front of you that feels peaceful,

Whatever that looks like for you.

An open space before you that feels light.

Maybe there's a season that brings you a sense of peace or calm,

Or maybe there's certain elements of nature,

Whether it's trees,

A type of floral or greenery.

Maybe it's just an open space before you that you've not yet entered.

So keeping these two landscapes,

The landscape of the year that you've come through,

And then the landscape of the year ahead of you,

And just gently visualizing now that the snake appears behind you,

Not in a threatening or scary or dramatic way,

Not in an anxiety-provoking way.

The snake appears as patient.

It appears as curious.

And just in a gentle,

Intuitive,

Wisdom way,

The snake begins to gently circle around you,

The landscape behind you,

And she's asking you to notice what feels unfinished,

What is still attached to your skin.

The snake energy is supportive and gentle,

And she's asking you if you're ready.

Are you ready for the final shedding?

What are you committing to letting go and softening,

Loosening your grip?

And gently,

Without judgment,

Just notice in your body where you might still be gripping or holding tension as you visualize the snake appearing.

Is it in your jaw?

Maybe in your shoulders?

For me,

It's usually in the upper neck.

Maybe it's in your belly or your heart.

And just gently noticing the in-breath and the out-breath.

You're in the energy of the snake.

It's not scary.

It's not producing anxiety.

She's beginning to loosen what is false.

She's starting to take away old labels.

The snake is starting to take away old roles,

Old fears.

You don't do not need to force anything.

Just allow what is ready to fall.

You might envision the snake beginning to uncoil,

Begin her trek backwards,

Further away into the distance of the landscape of the year you've just come through,

Taking with her what you're ready to let shed and fall.

The snake whispers back to you,

I cannot take what you're still defending.

I cannot take what you're still defending.

And just spending time letting what's ready to fall,

To shed,

Continue to move in the distance as the snake leaves.

And as you're ready,

Now keep bringing your perspective in front of you to the landscape ahead.

Perhaps visualizing a gate or a fence that hasn't opened yet,

Or a door,

And the horse waits beyond it.

Just if it feels right,

Visualizing a horse.

It doesn't have to be any certain way,

Color,

Shape,

What its mane and what its tail looks like,

Whatever comes to mind for you.

Noticing the strength in the horse,

Noticing the posture,

The aliveness.

You haven't crossed through the gate yet.

You first need to thank the snake for what she dismantled,

Even if it hurt.

So giving your thanks to the snake as she starts to move out of sight.

And now facing the horse,

And gently saying internally,

I release what I have outgrown.

So spending as much time in that visualization,

Knowing that there is an open landscape awaiting for you.

We're going to now shift to what it means to enter the year of the horse.

Okay,

And if it feels comfortable for you,

You can keep the eyes closed and just gently listen.

And holding that visualization sometimes is really helpful.

So now,

Starting the 17th of February,

We start to shift energetically into a season of momentum,

A season that's about forward movement and strength.

And so the horse energy,

We talked last day a lot about the snake energy.

So the horse energy,

How would you see it when you think symbolically of the horse?

I'd love to hear in the chat.

But some of the things I thought of in preparing for this is that horses act with purpose.

They also have a sense of freedom,

But they know their direction.

Anytime I've watched a horse,

They have this instinctual movement and it's almost enviable.

They have this embodied knowing.

Exactly,

Ginger,

A huge heart field,

Like heart coherence is what I called it,

A huge heart field.

So they are tuned in intuitively,

That self-awareness,

But they are tuned into the energy of those around them.

Shea says grounded and sturdy.

Oh,

I love that.

Freedom,

Dignity,

Compassion,

Soulful eyes.

Oh my gosh.

Yeah.

Grace,

Passion,

Holding their head high.

It's interesting,

Right?

Because I see horses as being this embodied knowing and strength,

But also there's this gentleness.

There's this beautiful interplay between strong and gentle.

It's beautiful to see a horse and when they're running free,

Just that liberation,

That freedom,

But there's also an ethereal quality of horses as well.

And what's interesting with horses is they always run towards what feels right,

And they always pivot and run away from what feels unsafe.

And so thinking about how might that work in your season as we enter the year of the horse.

Horses don't overthink.

They move from intuition.

They move from embodied body wisdom.

And I know for myself how much,

And I said this earlier,

How much we spend from the neck up in the swirl of our thoughts and our mind is so powerful.

And so if it's one thing,

If it's 1% more than before to move into embodied wisdom,

How beautiful would that be for all of us?

What a difference it would make if just 1% more we could move from our intuitive knowing,

From our internal wisdom,

Rather than from the swirl of the thoughts that are very separate from our embodied wisdom.

And that's how I think of the year of the horse.

It's not about,

And someone said earlier that it can feel scary that you're not going to get it right.

It's like,

What are the small incremental shifts we can make to move from the energy of the horse?

This takes practice.

You're not going to get it overnight.

It takes a conscious effort to kind of balance that self-awareness,

Forgive,

Soften,

Release,

And move from inner wisdom.

Oh,

I think it would be beautiful for our globe if we moved from body wisdom and intuition and what we know we are running towards that feels right.

We're also in the element of fire.

And so fire can feel chaotic,

Fire can feel rapid,

But fire can also,

If you think about sitting around a campfire,

Can also feel really calming.

And so the year of the horse plus the element of fire really is about potentially rapid momentum that the seeds that we planted through the year of the snake,

What we let go of has created space,

Created a clearing for rapid momentum to move forwards.

But I want to say this honestly,

And kind of really hone in on this.

The year of the horse plus the fire element,

If we are not acting with awareness,

Then we are at risk of our decisions becoming reactive rather than from embodied wisdom.

If we're not acting with awareness,

Then arguments in the year of the horse can rapidly escalate and become heated.

Thinking of the year of the horse plus the fire element,

Arguments can feel heated.

If we're not acting with that embodied wisdom and intuition,

Then our energy might burn too hot,

We're at risk of burnout.

And our nervous system can become quickly overloaded,

Stimulus overload,

Pushing too fast,

Too far.

So the year of the horse will magnify whatever energy you're moving from.

So just to be mindful of that,

That we can incorrectly see the horse and element of fire as like this rapid go,

Go,

Go,

We need to push,

Hustle,

Go further.

But that's not exactly what the energetic season is about.

Because if we're not aware,

We run the risk of burnout,

We run the risk of escalating conflict,

We run the risk of overloading our nervous system.

And horses,

If you think of the beautiful symbolism of the horse,

That's not how they operate.

They operate from intuition.

They know when to rest and slow down and they know when to catapult forward.

So we're trying to embody through our own intuitive wisdom,

Preparing for the horse's energy.

So grab a pencil and pen because here are some reflection prompts to think about.

Oh,

Yes,

Nancy,

The horse knows how to pace.

Exactly.

So pacing is crucial for the year of the horse.

We don't go zero to 100 because we risk injury,

You know,

Mentally,

Physically,

Emotionally,

We've got to pace it properly.

So a couple of reflections to journal about or think through as we prepare for the year of the horse.

Where in your life might you like to adopt more courage?

Where in your life do you need a little more courage?

Doesn't mean zero to 100.

It could mean looking yourself in the eyes in the mirror.

It could mean having a gentle conversation with your child that you're concerned about something,

But you're too afraid to bring it up.

It could mean asking for that raise or promotion.

So where in your life do you need courage?

There's so many different options.

So Monica says courage to say no.

Good one.

It actually fits beautifully into the second question.

So that is where in my life do I need boundaries?

And boundaries can be physical boundaries that can also be energetic boundaries.

So one of the things that comes up a lot is,

You know,

Energetic boundaries around work and how since the pandemic and things going online,

We're more available than ever before.

And so for me,

A boundary around like clearly delineating end of work and now presence with family and friends,

Presence and connection.

So that's a boundary that I want to really hold firm to a little bit more this year.

Courage to step forwards,

Accepting how you look with your operation scar.

Beautiful bit.

Next question is where have I confused urgency with alignment?

So that's going back to Nancy's beautiful comment about pacing back to,

Like I said,

If we're not acting with awareness,

We run the risk of burnout,

Of rushing decisions,

Being reactive,

Where we really need to think through what is aligned.

Okay,

And that leads into the next question,

Which is what does aligned movement feel like in your body?

And this can be a tough one.

We don't necessarily need to know the answer,

But these are things to reflect on,

To journal about over the coming weeks.

An easier question potentially is when do you feel out of alignment?

What is your body message telling you that you're not in alignment?

Okay,

There's usually one either responding to what feels in alignment versus what doesn't.

One might come a little bit easier first,

And then you can talk through and reflect on what it does look like to be aligned.

So yeah,

Monica,

When you don't sleep,

Yeah,

Disrupted sleep,

Huge indicator that maybe there's some misalignment happening.

I've got chronic neck tension,

And I can get a really significant flare up when I'm not in alignment.

So what is true for you?

It can be in the body,

It can be a certain type of cycle of thinking,

An inner critic might come out that's saying the same thing on repeat all the time.

You might have a racing heart.

One of the ones for me that's a voice that says you're never going to figure it out.

So I know I'm not acting in alignment when that voice is driving front seat with me.

It's pulling me out of alignment.

And that's a tough one because I operate sometimes in fear because I want things to happen so quickly.

And I've really got to pay attention.

Okay,

When's the voice saying you're never going to figure this out,

Megan,

You're too late.

You've missed it.

That can be a tough one to catch.

And I'm trying to catch it early.

And that maybe is what the Year of the Horse is about for me is catching it a little bit earlier.

It's not about radically changing it tomorrow.

It's catching it earlier.

So the final question is,

Where do I need to say not yet?

Right,

We think about the Year of the Horse as momentum.

But if we think intuitively and working from body wisdom,

Where do I need to say not yet?

Still in preparation.

Because back to Nancy's beautiful comment.

Thank you so much,

Nancy.

I feel like you're co-creating with me.

It is about pacing.

Right?

So where do you need to say not yet?

Where is urgency getting in the way of alignment?

And where do I need to say not yet?

And we talked about how the horse represents freedom.

But it's really important to say that freedom doesn't mean chaos.

You're allowed to slow in the Year of the Horse.

So this year might mean really embodying self-regulation,

Really embodying boundaries and self-awareness.

If you think about fire,

Fire without boundaries becomes massively destructive.

Okay,

So maybe this year is about self-regulation,

Boundaries,

Self-awareness.

And so thinking about where are you chasing?

Where are you overextending?

Are you confusing that with alignment?

And it's subtle.

It can be hard.

It can be really hard to detect that,

But just thinking that through.

So this year is not about confusing urgency with destiny or alignment.

You want to move fast when you're in alignment,

But you want to pause when it's not.

And that's the key with the Year of the Horse.

You want to move when you are aligned,

And you want to pause when it's not.

And so if it's one thing you take away from this session,

The most powerful decision you can make in this next year ahead is to listen before you move.

And when I say listen,

I mean that simple practice we did at the beginning,

Hand to heart,

As simple as that,

Connecting to what feels aligned before you move.

I really believe that what's meant for you will always find your way to you,

But you want to listen this year.

You want that embodied wisdom of the body,

Wisdom of our intuition before you move.

All right,

So as we wrap up,

What are we feeling right now?

Are we feeling hopeful?

Are we feeling hesitant?

Are we feeling hot and heated,

Confused?

Let's check in with one another with what we're feeling with all of this.

So Monica's feeling excited.

Jane is feeling hopeful.

Soft after shedding.

Getting the show on the road already.

I love that.

Giddy up,

As they say,

Year of the Horse.

Starting to start moving with as much purpose as a horse.

Yeah.

So maybe as you enter the year ahead starting tomorrow,

What are some of the things you can place in your space to remind you of the symbolism of the horse?

What represents strength to you?

What represents freedom to you?

What represents alignment?

Maybe it's,

You know,

Finding a beautiful picture of a horse and having it as your background on your phone or a picture somewhere.

Maybe it's going to see a horse if that's available to you.

Something to signify remembrance,

To signify the strength of tapping into intuition and body wisdom.

So as we start to wrap up,

One of the things I want to invite you to do is,

Just like we began,

Placing one hand over the heart.

And this is my symbol of listening,

My symbol of connection to self.

You might decide that there's something else that you do.

But in community,

Just finding that gentle connection with self.

And completing this sentence either silently or feeling free to put in the chat,

This year,

The year of the horse,

I'm choosing to move from.

And then enter the word that makes sense.

So some examples could be,

This year,

The year of the horse,

I am choosing to move from clarity.

I am choosing to move from self-trust.

I'm choosing to move from authentic presence,

Boundaries,

Self-regulation,

Whatever comes to you and feels right for you in this moment.

And you can change it every day if you'd like.

But this year,

The year of the horse,

Thinking through everything we've discussed tonight,

You're going to choose to move this year from,

And insert the word that comes to mind.

The word that instantly came up for me is,

I'm choosing to move this year from consistency.

To work towards consistent presence in the different spaces that I show up to.

Consistency applies to the health habits that I want to continue to nourish in my life.

Consistency in my thoughts and my mindset.

I found the emotions and the thoughts up and down this last year.

So I want to move this year from consistency.

So that's my word,

And you're welcome to use that word as well.

So Terry's moving from confidence.

Lori's moving from grace.

Shay is moving from chaos to order.

Love that.

Loving purpose,

Brooke.

Self-forgiveness.

Yeah.

Think about what that means from an embodied place.

If we moved from the words you're saying,

If we moved this year from love,

From loving purpose,

From relaxed clarity,

I love that Carol,

From consistency and confidence,

What might energetically change in your environment and the way you move through the world?

Let's keep those words in mind.

Moving from relaxed clarity,

Steadiness,

Self-awareness,

Self-trust.

Yeah.

What if the globe moved from these words?

What could be possible?

And one thing you're no longer carrying forward is what?

One thing that you're no longer carrying forward.

You've shed that.

Let me tune into my intuition.

One thing I'm no longer carrying forward.

I'm going to no longer carry forward this idea that I'm out of time.

There is time.

So that's what I'm going to share with the group.

So let's see.

Smallness.

Christina,

I love that one.

I might steal that one tomorrow.

Amanda says desperation from a sense of lack.

Ingrid,

I love that.

Shrinking.

Yes,

Maisha.

Think of that.

If you're no longer carrying forward shrinking,

Hidden anger,

Heaviness of all or nothing,

Uncertainty,

Just think of the energy of what we just went through.

This year ahead,

I'm moving from love,

From self-trust,

From relaxed clarity,

From consistency.

I'm no longer carrying forward shame,

Unworthiness,

Uncertainty.

Just think of the energy of those.

And let's,

Again,

Commit together.

It's not all 100% we're going to be moving from all those words we said we want to move from,

But let's collectively commit to 1% more than before.

And I'm going to hold you to it because in a month's time,

We are coming back together as a to dive into how has the first month gone with the year of the horse.

So how you move into this next year matters more than how fast you're moving.

As Nancy said it so beautifully,

We're pacing.

So I want to thank you all so much for spending 90 minutes with me to close out the year of the snake consciously and open yourself up to what's possible in the year of the horse when you choose to move from clarity,

Love,

Self-trust,

Confidence,

Consistency,

Relaxed clarity,

Truth.

I want all of that for you.

I want all of that for us.

I want all of that for the world.

And I just thank you so much for being here and spending time with me.

Blessings to you all.

Bye for now.

Reviews

I couldn’t stay in the live session so loved being able to listen today. So helpful. Thank you 🙏