How To Finish and Begin at The Same Time

I don’t like to think about the New Year as a stark ending followed by a swift beginning. Instead, it’s always felt like a continuous movement.

Some years this put my mind at ease, other times it doesn’t. Is it better to think about the passing of time as never-stopping, always flowing, like a wild current? Or is it better to think of it thorugh the numbers and lines of a calendar that we’ve created and promised to ourselves?

Regardless, I think it’s fair to say that the holiday of New Year’s feels like a beginning and an ending at the same time.

Beginnings make me excited. A fresh, empty page. An empty calendar. But I’m also addicted to the nostalgia of endings as well. So, you’re starting to see why I always romanticize the end of each year — I’ve done it quite a few times on this newsletter!

The overwhelm still happens, though. So for this year, I put together a little to-do list. Not one that is focused on setting huge goals and quarterly measurements (although there’s a place for that as well!)

Rather, this is a list that I hope lets you see New Year’s Eve for what it is: a moment to sit in mindfulness and momentum. Because we very much get caught up with the beginning and end of it all without taking a moment to embrace the inbetween.

Note: this list will likely be impossible to do before the year ends. And that’s the point! Let this be a list that guides you into the first weeks of 2026.

A spiritual clearing of the cache, if you will.

This is something my mother taught me, which is simple: clean up your space so that you enter the new year as clear-headed as possible. It’s obvious. But here’s the thing, mom (if you’re reading this), I don’t think I’ll have time for a whole reset this year. And if you’re in the same boat, might I suggest something that may do the same trick:

• Reset a space where you create (your writing desk, your in-home studio, the corner of your bedroom where you do your makeup or create video content, you get it).

• Do some dusting (you’ve probably forgotten about a couple spots this year). It’s annoying, yes. But it can also be quick if you don’t do much else. Vaccuming can have the same effect.

• Clear some surfaces. If you can’t be bothered about the clothes on your floor (that’s 2026 You’s problem), just focus on decluttering the areas you see the most: the top of your dresser, the kitchen or bathroom countertops, your coffee table, side tables, etc.) It’s low pressure and feels like a little rinse for your brain.

Like it or not, our digital surfaces need a wipe down as well. We tend to overlook this because we’re so trusting of the digital devices, clouds and tech companies to hold onto our virtual archives.

This includes:

• Cleaning out your camera roll. I.e.: delete duplicate images, back up photos onto cloud / Google Photos. Bonus: pick some out to print out from the last year for an album or scrapbook!

• Deleting emails. We all need to do this! Take some time to unsubscribe from unwanted promotional emails or newsletters, too.

• Redesign your home screen. I did this recently and genuinely, I was shocked at how much better I felt. I’m currently doing a series over on TikTok breaking down how I organized each page.

I think one of the best ways to add a bit of magic to your New Year’s Eve is to light a candle and do a little tarot reading for yourself. I’m not an expert in readings by any means, but pulling a card around significant points in the year (birthdays, Halloween, solstices, etc.) always helps me get a little grounded. So, of course, NYE is a perfect time for it.

You don’t have to do anything fancy, just a single card reading. My only humble tip is to not rush to look up what the card means in your booklet or via Google.

First just observe the card you pulled: what is the image telling you? What do you notice about it first? What emotions does it bring up? Take a moment to journal about it and you’d be surprised what ideas may come from it for the new year.

If you don’t have a deck of your own, I honestly love the Trusted Tarot app that gives the same effect.

I don’t have any specific tips on setting and achieving your goals for the new year. That’s something I’m still figuring out myself!

But here’s some advice I can give you with my whole chest: Allow yourself to want something! Far too often, we turn off the faucet of our desires before they can even show themselves clearly. I always think of the quote that Mary Lamb says in the The Holdovers: “You can’t even dream a whole dream, can you?”

If you’re really trying to achieve big things and make a meaningful change this year, allow yourself to say what you want. The more specific, the better. This sounds obvious, but for the longest time I thought I was doing this when I really wasn’t.

If you’re like this too, take a moment now, at the cusp of 2025 and 2026 to dream a little bit (and maybe even believe it!)

If you have a complicated relationship with discipline, try a more gentle (and in my opinion, more empowering) approach. Sit down and make a list of everything you want to devote yourself to this upcoming year.

I didn’t coin this idea by any means, but this has definitely been one of the best mindshifts I had in 2025.

Because in my dopamine-rotted mind, discipline = school, rules, limitations. Boo boo gross gross!

But, devotion = spirituality, femininity, pleasure!!!

Suddenly, things started to get done! And again, I want you to ease into the romanticism of the new year instead of getting hung up about the big, momentus goals. Because doing this — a list of devotions — will be the momentum that gets you going:

Some examples:

• I am devoted to waking up early.

• I am devoted to writing morning pages every day.

• I am devoted to moving and exercising my body.

Sounds waaaay romantic, right?

I know, this feels like I’m just giving you a chores list. But honesty, the end of the year is a great time to just run around and do some errands.

But this is less about that and more about embracing the old in a new way. As someone who loves clothes, I don’t think it’s wise to try and reorganize or clean out your whole closet in preperation for the new year. But, what you can do is pull out that dusty bag of “to tailor” items and give them new life.

In simplest terms, this is a beautiful way to show love for your items. And especially if you’re planning on doing a low-buy in January, what a better, more momentum-filled task than a trip to the tailor?

Note: The same effect can be created by a trip to the cobbler! There’s something beautiful about taking in a pair of shoes that carried you through the past year and giving them some R&R.

Music can be so powerful for creativity and manifestation of any kind. Every year in December, I like to listen back through my favorite songs the past year (I make a playlist each year to collect songs and albums I’ve been loving but sometimes my Spotify Wrapped gets it right too).

As I get closer to the end of December, I like to make a new playlist that specifically encapsulates the energy I want to bring into the new year. I think pairing that with your moodboard making, journaling, meditation session, whatever, can really make an impact.

Finally, let me get on my soap box about going out in NYE for a sec. If to you, dear reader, the perfect night out on the last day of the year hopping around parties in heels, dancing your way into 2026, DO IT. But I’m here to also tell you that spending New Years eve can be absolutely anything you want it to be. A quiet night in, a dinner party, a movie night, the options are endless!

In other words, don’t spend the final moments of the year doing something you think you should be doing.

Thank you for reading!!! 2025 marked my FIFTH writing this newsletter which is crazy to think about. I want to give a special and heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been a subscriber since my early days, has tuned in during the last 12 months or who have joined me anywhere inbetween.

I can finally promise a consistent schedule with you all, along with a lot of fun posts planned for the first quarter of 2026. I’ll be posting twice a month (every other Sunday) — usually 1 paid post and one free. More details to come! :)

& HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Much love,

Arbela ❤️