It was like the first day of school today. I am doing the spiritual mentorship as part of a group, there are five of us including Marion and aside from marvelling at new pens and notebooks (ooh, I do love a bit of stationary), we went through the mechanics of the year-long programme and the first month’s homework.

There is a lot of it and remember, this all has to be done within the confines of real-life – I look back at my years at uni and wonder what on earth I did with all that spare time. I know the answer to that of course…I squandered it.

Anyway, I digress. This is our work for January –

* Do at least one exercise class per week.

* Meditate for at least 10 minutes per day Mon – Fri.

* Do at least two Conscious resting sessions of 20 – 30 mins per week (a relaxing reclining meditation).

* Declutter your wardrobe.

* Write a list of the things you need in your life in order to thrive.

* Have two 45-minute phone calls with a spiritual buddy.

* Complete two monthly review forms.

* Take part in a 1hr 45min group phone call

It’s making me exhausted just looking at the list. I realise that this ‘work’ has to be prioritised. There will always be an excuse not to do it – work, ferrying kids around, calls to my parents, walking the dog etc. The good news is, I already exercise regularly, my wardrobe has been Marie Kondo’d and I do conscious resting three or four times a week. You should try it, it instantly slows my heartbeat and is an excellent stress buster.

Anyway, I am going to leave you with a quote from Marion, my spiritual mentor, about the crux of this year-long programme – Grace.

“Grace is the word I use for what cannot really be named, only experienced. When we live a life guided by Grace we feel more uplifted, trusting, peaceful, inspired, grateful and so much more. We watch as magical events and synchronicities weave through our daily lives. We live in faith and expectation of greatness, we follow the energy and go with the flow. We appreciate the beauty in nature and feel love for no reason, both for ourselves and others. We stop taking things personally, we look for the best in ourselves and each other.”

I definitely want a slice of that, in which case, I’d better knuckle down and do the homework.