Hello beautiful,​
My Gentle January continues though activity levels have risen: as all my regularly scheduled classes and sessions resumed this week. It was so lovely to have time off to rest, recover, revel, and refresh so I was excited to return!

Fresh indeed, snow fell and I completed my December reflections while beginning my Annual Review process and planning adventures for 2025.

In December all of my Ballet students successfully passed their Royal Academy of Dance-style examination, displaying improved technique and artistry. I’m so proud of their progress and eager to proceed to the next level(s) with my dancers!

Amidst a month of festivity, I continued to create and publish, enjoy the artistic work of others, and begin the process of reflecting on the past year as a whole and dreaming and planning the next.

December brought winter both symbolically, at the seasonal transition of the Winter Solstice, and in reality as temperatures were cold and days short here in Cologne.

​Read the December Engendered Completion & Celebration article here​

My other creations, recommendations, and questions for you are:

Viewing:

• ​2024 Annual Book Flip - Creative BuJo Collections, tracking & results video on YouTube is a stroll down memory lane in last year's projects and focus areas
• Yes I am excited for a few of these 10 Most-Anticipated Book-to-Film Adaptations to See in 2025, it's #9 for me bigtime (I believe it was a 2023 read for me?) and #6 as well🙂

Listening:

• ​Balletlicious Barre+ Dance is my current ballet and movement class soundtrack
• Last year's Quantum Leaping into 2024 playlist

Reading:

• Anticipating the Best Romances Out this Winter from Bookbub and
• I'm very interested to read this book which came out last year: James
• Still working on Evocation: Book I in The Summoner's Circle by S.T. Gibson

Practicing:

• Bringing warmth to my winter with my favorite things. How to identify what you enjoy? The Atlantic How To Podcast explains, and I especially took away the concept of balance between enjoyment, satisfaction, and
• Creative goal-setting and memory keeping like Draw Your Year - make a 2025 zine with Rhiannon James
• ​5-Minute Ways to Feel Healthier and Happier from the Guardian
• ​8 Ways to Stay Happier this year according to science from the BBC
• ​25 Unexpected, Little Ways to Improve Your Mental Health in 2025 from HuffPost: #19 is of course a favorite of mine!
• Creating a peaceful morning with practices like these 12 Micro-Habits for a Stress-Free Start from Camille Styles
• Reflection with questions like the 10 Questions to Ask Yourself at the Start of the Year from Time

Practicing Together LIVE / Adult Movement Classes this week:

• In-Studio Adult Beginner Ballet, 6-7:00pm CET Mondays, Tanzschule Tanzraum Nippes, Cologne, Germany creates a strong, body-friendly, and graceful foundation for dance and makes a great fresh start in 2025! (German)
• Online Yogalicious Gentle Yoga. 7-8:00pm CET Tuesdays (8-9:00am HI) provides a delicious mindful movement feast which balances strength, balance and coordination for mind, body, and spirit adaptable to all levels and conditions (English)
• Online Balletlicious Gentle Adaptive Ballet Barre+, 7:30-8:30am CET Wednesdays, consists of mostly barre with a little dancey centre work, building a strong, body-friendly, and graceful foundation for dance at home or anywhere in the world (English)

Inquiring:

• What do you most want to remember from December/the past month, quarter, and year?
• Which books, musical selections, and viewing do you currently recommend?
• What do your end/beginning of year transition rituals look like?
• How can I support you in moving powerfully into 2025?

You're more than welcome to respond to the questions above and gladly share your response to the questions above or provide other updates by replying to this email or on social media if you are active there.

Wishing needed moisture and coolness to put out the fires in California, and of war and oppression wherever it may be.

I appreciate your presence in my life and would love to see you in a mindful movement class, coaching session, collaboration or other context soon!

Love, Blythe

Blythe Stephens, MFA, Bliss Catalyst
they/them or she/her
Creator of A Blythe Coach: dance through your difficulties
and take leaps of faith into a joyful, fulfilling life

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