Welcome to a new year! The older I get, the faster the years fly by, but I am always excited at the prospect of fresh beginnings. They offer pivotal points to pause and reflect upon the choices we have made; to determine if we want to continue along that same path or create different opportunities for ourselves.

It’s great to have a time of year devoted to sanctioned do-overs. Having a bad day or are things not going your way? A do-over is better than any famous cure-all product that promises to clean up anything that ails you. 

Inspired by fellow Natural Awakenings publishers around the country, I am now considering my own 2014 do-overs. With the help of my life coach, I have updated my intentions, defined my annual business plan, started a new exercise regimen and located a promising 365-day inspiration book to remind me of my place in the universe and, I trust, help me grow in wisdom. I hope to fill coming months with more activities that broaden my mind, strengthen my body and feed my soul.

In this annual Health & Wellness issue, we hope you’ll find cause for reflection on how to achieve optimum overall health. Delving into Kathleen Barnes’ feature article, “Build Your Own Wellness Dream Team,” and Lauressa Nelson’s “A Health Coach Helps Us Change for Good,” I expect you’ll find good reasons to draw members of your customized support team from those you meet monthly in these pages. Are you ready to be transformed?

I am privileged to be a part of the larger Natural Awakenings family of publishers, advertisers, distribution sites and millions of readers that grasp the vision of what it takes to bring about positive change in our own communities. In our 2014 kickoff announcement, “Catalyst for Change: Natural Awakenings Celebrates 20 years,” Sharon Bruckman, company founder and CEO, applauds our nationwide readership: “Collectively, we comprise a great movement embodying ways of living that are healthy for people and the planet. Together, we are producing a pay-it-forward chain reaction of positive energy and conscious living that benefits everyone.” That, I believe, says it all.

May 2014 be your best year yet, Reid Boyer, Publisher