„You're always with yourself, so make sure you're in good company.“

Diane von Fürstenberg (Belgian fashion designer, born 1946)

As we all know, the end of each year is a good time to look back—not to dwell on what didn’t go as planned, but to reflect on where we stand today and take charge of what may be important for our future in the here and now.

Last weekend, I took some time to reflect on the year 2024. A few things came to mind that I’d like to share with you. And I want to reveal a little secret.

Most of you know that I support the organization "Médecins Sans Frontières" (Doctors without borders). I was surprised myself when, at the beginning of this year, I received a heartfelt thank-you letter from them, letting me know I have been supporting their work for 15 years.

Why am I sharing this with you here? Well, part of the thanks goes to you, as Virya-meditators.

Every year, I donate a fixed portion of all course revenues.

What only a very few of you know—and what I have kept secret until now—is that I donate all proceeds from courses that have been canceled. So, if you ever had to cancel a session and we couldn’t reschedule it, for example, because it was part of a group course, the payment for that session went entirely to Médecins Sans Frontières.

I hadn’t shared this before because I didn’t want to encourage anyone to skip their sessions. But this year, a dear student was so sad about having to miss her group course that I told her about this. And… she was just a little bit happier knowing that something good came out of it after all.

So now I’m sharing it with all of you. But please don’t skip your sessions because of this! There’s always the option to attend your course and still donate. 😉

Thinking about donations—something we hear a lot about at the end of the year—brought another lovely memory from this year to mind:

This summer, I was walking along the Main River in Frankfurt with a friend. We passed a homeless person sleeping under a bridge. I asked my friend, “If you knew that in your next life, you’d have to switch places with that homeless person, would you live your life differently?” My friend thought for a moment and said, “Yes.” He stopped, turned around, and walked back a few steps to give the homeless person some money.

I believe that as long as we can see ourselves in others, we don’t have to try to be generous, compassionate, or loving—it’s simply in our nature. It’s not in our nature to walk past people in need or suffering without feeling something. If you feel something, it’s a sign that you see yourself in them—and by helping them in any way, you also help yourself.

Those words are a beautiful nugget to close the year with, don’t you think?

But I’d also like to share another short story from this year that made me smile several times:

You know that before we begin our actual meditation, we do a brief orientation of the space to provide our nervous system with a sense of safety and calm down the sympathetic energy a bit.

Sometimes, I suggest what we should look for—patterns or colors, for example. Occasionally, I ask you what we should search for.

This year, a very kind and attentive student responded to this question with: “The letter Z.” I couldn’t help but laugh and spent that day searching intensely for a "Z" in our meditation room. And some of you smiled, too, when I shared this new orientation anchor with you.

I wish you and your loved ones a beautiful Advent season, wonderfully meditative Christmas days, and a fresh start into the new year with an expectant, relaxed smile.

Stay mindful of all the "Zs" and other letters around you, and always help yourself a little by remembering the people around you.

Warm regards,

Heiko