A journey of breakthrough
- on a sea of obstacles
The 4 Year Cycle
A journey of breakthrough
- on a sea of obstacles
Now
is not the time to cling to
what was, but to amend what is.
Helen Hayes
Welcome to the 4 year cycle of identity, priority, effort and tenacity. The events of this hard working year will leave you in no doubt that the time has come to set new priorities and strive toward a specific long-term goal. As the year unfolds, you will need to develop a clear vision of what you want, make a firm commitment to attaining it, and keep in mind that the reason the 4 year often seems like a confusing and bumpy ride is because its nature is to place obstacles in your path any time your attention is diverted from reality.
The transition from the optimistic ‘follow your dream’ 3 year to the practical ‘get it right’ 4 year is often a difficult one, until you accept that this is all part of what it is going to take to evolve into your higher self.
The 4 energy reacts to the strength of your Will, which is comprised of all your feelings, both pleasant and unpleasant. Denial of your feelings weakens and imprisons your Will which, by its very nature, needs to be free.
Where the Will is strong, great accomplishments can be made. However, it is in the 4 year that we realize that our Will is not as free as we believed it to be because we have repressed it with a limited vision of our potential. Knowing how you feel is the only way to know what you want and how to create it. It is from our feelings that all creativity is born and, thankfully, your experiences along the 4 road will make emotional denial almost impossible.
The 4 energy can make you feel restricted and boxed-in by circumstances ‘beyond your control’. However, the part of your Will that is free is now trying to rescue the imprisoned parts of itself. Don’t worry if you do not understand this immediately. As the year unfolds, new understandings will come.
4 is a serious and practical energy which needs a specific goal to work towards. It responds best to routine, efficiency, order, and organization. It needs to know its destination in advance so that it can maintain its profound sense of purpose but, as you will soon discover, there really are limitations on how far you can travel this year. So, when you find yourself dealing with the inevitable frustrations that come with such restriction, think about the parable of the two frogs who fell into a pail of milk. One of them could not accept its sudden new reality and drowned. The other realized what had happened and could not accept such a fate. It went into survival mode and thrashed around and did whatever it could to stay afloat. Eventually, all that effort paid off. The thrashing around turned the milk into butter and the frog was able to climb out.
But for you, the story does not end there. Just because the 3 year is over does not mean that you cannot take what you learned from it into the 4 year.
3 is the number of optimism, but it was pessimism that defeated the first frog and caused it to drown. The 3 year urged you to see beyond your first impressions and face the reality of the situation. The first impression that the first frog had was that nothing could be done to change things, so why even try? 3 is the number of ‘the joy of living’ and it seems that the second frog enjoyed life enough to want to persevere in order to preserve it. His purpose was not only to survive, but also to find a way to enjoy life again.
This year, you will be developing a greater sense of your own purpose and you will be setting a definite course or direction for yourself. You cannot drift aimlessly along and just hope for the best. You need a specific and meaningful goal to focus on and be responsible for.
Seriously consider every aspect of your life and confront yourself with the vision of where each aspect is leading. And, later in the year, when you find yourself churning around in a situation that appears to place you out of your depth, be practical, face the facts, and look for solutions that will change your circumstances.
Yes, 4 is a serious and life-changing cycle. As soon as you accept the nature of the 4 year, you will be able to relax into it. From a more accepting frame of mind, you will be able to shape your reality to your own design, rather than have it shaped for you.
4 is the number of priority and organization, and you must organize your life according to what is important to you. Things you believed were important may be the very same things that are now restricting you. Blaming others is just another form of restriction because it implies that you are a victim when, in reality, it is you who is causing your own restrictions by refusing to prioritize.
The circumstances of the 4 year enable you to break free from situations and beliefs that are keeping you physically, emotionally, creatively, or intellectually confined. These issues are preventing you from being the person you know you can be. This year, you will be facing the reality of YOU - and it may not always be a pretty sight, especially when you realize that you are more afraid of change than you thought.
It is time to weed out the useless and trivial aspects of your life, especially those beliefs and attitudes that simply don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. These trivialities are adding confusion to the larger picture. Focus on what really matters to you and, even then, face the possibility that half of those things don’t matter either. What does matter is your freedom to exist - and create - in your own right.
Take an honest look at those aspects which you believe are holding you back. You will soon realize that many of them are of your own making. Are you too set in your ways or too frivolous and uncaring? Are you too stubborn to accept your past and present mistakes? Are you unrealistic about your talents and potential? Are you unhealthy due to poor diet, substance abuse, or lack of exercise or sleep? Are you unrealistic about finance and materiality? Do you distract yourself from reality? Do you base your actions on your own feelings and beliefs, or those of other people? Are you freeing your Will, or giving it away? Be honest with yourself. Identify what is not working and, through the process of elimination, you will soon see the direction you must take if you are to build the identity and new circumstances you desire.
It is time to construct what you want. Hard work is inevitable. Belief in yourself is the key. A certain dream or goal may have materialized last year but, this year, you are dealing with the hard work that comes with sustaining a goal.
Review and organize your finances and material assets. The events of April and May will bring these matters to your attention. Conserve money where you can because next year’s 5 cycle will provide the atmosphere and opportunity to invest in yourself or in something that excites you. Be practical and efficient with this year’s limited resources. Understand how money works and be aware of what is happening in the deceptive world of politics and economics.
The 4 year is a road of limitations and roadblocks - life’s very own obstacle course. It brings you to what you believe are your personal limits. In turn, you will learn to expand your Will to such an extent that this increase of energy will push your limits further away from you. Then, although you will still have limits - we all do - they will not be boxing you in or otherwise pressuring you. A firm goal must be set, a commitment to it must be made, and effort must be exerted. Any time you feel yourself struggling this year, stop what you are doing and face the facts, just as they are.
You will be coming to terms with your own identity this year and “who am I?” and “what is my purpose” may be two of your most frequent questions. Your sense of identity does not come from what you do in life but from the way you feel about life and your place in it. Your professional life may predominate, but there is more to you than what you do for a living. The question is, what do you do for a life?
Progress is not rapid in the 4 year cycle. You may often encounter delays and hurdles, and bouts of loneliness, pessimism, and frustration, only to regain your balance as you remember what this year is all about - making an effort to live as you want to live.
Why must the 4 year be so frustrating? To show you that many of your restrictions are unnecessary and that no matter what barriers arise, you can deal with them and use them to your advantage. Just keep reminding yourself of what your reality actually is and adapt to it, moment-by-moment.
This year you will be getting your act together and you will be breaking out of the prison that you or others have built around you. This may not be the easiest of years but, with determination, it can be one of the most fulfilling cycles you will ever experience.