Welcome to 2026, a ten/one year (2+0+2+6 = 10, 1+0 = 1), the first year in a brand-new nine-year spin around the numerological wheel. This is The First Step, The Fresh Start, The Starting Line, The Magic Mission, and The Call to Adventure.

Ten is a number of rolling the dice, or spinning the wheel! It’s also the number of completion and aftermath, and what it takes to actually move on, begin again, keep living. One is the number of the self and the start. It asks us to take stock of who we are right here, right now, at the beginning of a new year. A new cycle.

Pause for a moment to scan from the top of the head, all the way down to the tips of the toes, noticing where you may be holding any tension or extra energy. As you breathe, in through the nose, out through the mouth, let each inhale invite expansion and allow each exhale to encourage relief and release.

In previous years, I’ve written fairly length new year’s missives, but this year feels different. This year feels like a breath of fresh air after being in stifling heat for too long. This year is calling for distillation, simplicity, and relief.

☸️: Join me live on Zoom on Saturday, January 3rd, 2026 at 9AM PST / 12pm EST for Throwing Clay on the Wheel Year: Molding 2026 with Numerology — First, a mini-lecture on the year at-large, and what to expect from a 10/1 year! Then, it’s all about you! Most of our time together will be spent calculating your personal Yearly and Monthly numbers, tuning into the rhythm they’re providing for your year, and strategizing on how to work with them.

💚: SMUT CLUB is now scheduled through June 2026! And if you’re crave-ing more Heated Rivalry? For the first 6 months of 2026, we are reading all 6 books in the Game Changers series by Rachel Reid. Come for one or all. To get all of the emails with dates and info, sign up here!

🥳: Call Your Coven is back with January 2026: Happy New Year — AKA, How Hard Have You Come?, AKA a Heated Rivalry fancast. As we move into 2026, channel your excitement and enthusiasm into intentional action. Remember that while we might not see the fruits right away, we are living in integrity and faithfully doing our good and honest work. We are executing on our plans and acting as if. And remember to pull back and get some perspective. No base jumping! We’re grateful for you, and here to support you as the wheel spins again.

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I know, I know, you’ve heard it before. But it’s an aphorism (a wisdom principle) for a reason!

Perhaps you’ll like Dolly Parton’s version better?

What does intention add to this mission?

Here’s why Know theyself is my singular directive for 2026, and why it’s worthy of your time and our collective efforts:

You may also be familiar with the pyramid-shaped depiction of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, if not for it’s psychological use, then for it’s meme potential. But did you know that it’s an individualistic interpretation of communal Siksika (Blackfoot) wisdom?

Whereas Self-Actualization is at the top of Maslow’s pyramid, it’s at the bottom of the Siksika’s, and represents the first step towards Community Actualization and then Cultural Perpetuity. The differences make a world of difference, as Maslow seems concerned with just one person’s journey in one lifetime, where the Indigenous way of thinking encompasses entire generations and the larger cycles of cultural existence.

Further more, the Blackfoot people believe that self-actualization is innate and we strive to embody it in every moment, which I find to be a highly positive and encouraging way to view human nature, something we could all use a little more of these days.

If this year is going to be different, if this cycle is going to move us collectively in a fresh direction, we must all be taking steps to be our truest selves so that we may exist more fully in community, and the evolving world at-large. The new world needs you—not in a recruitment way, but in a creative one.

Being ourselves can be a lonely path. We felt that last year in the Hermit year. But it doesn’t stay a lonely path, and in fact, the relationships you build along the way will be more satisfying because they are meeting the you that you are molding. If you fall into pessimism, practice hope. If self-serving behaviors threaten to overtake you, join forces with others doing the work. If you feel dreadfully misunderstood, open up to someone and let them in to your experience.

Try and allow the shift into 2026 to be easy and unblemished. Let it be a new chapter, in whatever way you can. Another chance to do what you want to do, say what you want to say, and be who you want to be, even if your circumstances are undesirable. Welcome what shows up. Let what’s done be done. Turn your face to the winter sun, and embrace the possibility of all that’s on its way to you.

Come to my workshop tomorrow! We’re going to be digging into the year, its energies, and how you’re spinning on the wheel of 2026. It’ll also be recorded so if you can’t make it live, you can catch the replay.

You can also sign up to be a paid pal here at swimming in the soup. This year, we’re going to be honing in on numerology and creativity through weekly forecasts, personal essays and Friday Fives, Learn-alongs from my Clinical Pysch program, and quarterly deep-dives or AMA-style pieces. You’ll also get access to The Soup™ Discord server, and first dibs on future offerings.