Life comes in Cycles of Seven

Entering a New Life Cycle with an Open Heart

I’ve always loved the idea that life moves in cycles of seven. Every seven years, we get a chance to renew, refresh, and begin again — like a soulful spring clean of our inner world.

It’s such a beautiful rhythm when you think about it. Every seven years, we get a chance to check in with ourselves and ask, “Is this still working for me? Am I living in alignment with who I’ve become?”

Now that I’ve crossed into my 8th cycle — that’s beyond 49 — I can honestly say this transition feels different to any before it. There’s this deep calmness, a sense of wisdom that doesn’t need to prove itself. After all the doing, juggling, fixing, and people-pleasing of my 40s, I’ve found a softness here that feels like exhaling after a very long breath.

Time doesn’t feel like something I have to control anymore. It’s more fluid — like a river I can finally float down instead of constantly swimming against. And with that surrender has come the sweetest sense of peace.

But here’s the thing I’ve learned: to step into a new cycle with an open heart, you first have to honor the one you’re leaving behind.

You can’t drag the busyness, guilt, or expectations of your 40s into your 50s and expect it to feel expansive. That’s like trying to plant a new garden without clearing last season’s weeds.

The 7-Year Cycles of Life

Here’s how I like to think of the cycles — the chapters of a lifetime that each bring their own theme and energy:

1. 0–7 years: The Foundation

   The magical years. We’re little sponges, soaking up love, safety, and belonging (or the lack of it). The world feels huge and full of wonder.

   
   

2. 7–14 years: The Awakening of Self

   We start to discover “me.” Friendships form, emotions deepen, and our first heartaches and betrayals shape our understanding of trust.

   
   

3. 14–21 years: The Becoming

   Oh, the drama! The freedom! The discovery! We’re full of ideals, hormones, and late-night talks about the meaning of life.

   
   

4. 21–28 years: The Building Years

   We’re constructing — careers, families, dreams. It’s the decade of effort and proving ourselves (often without much rest).

   
   

5. 28–35 years: The Shifting Ground

   The first big reality check. Things that once made sense suddenly don’t. We start asking bigger questions — Who am I? What’s my purpose?

   
   

6. 35–42 years: The Deepening

   We crave more meaning. We try to balance it all — work, kids, health, maybe a spiritual practice squeezed in before school drop-off.

   
   

7. 42–49 years: The Reckoning

   The “busy” years. Responsibilities peak, and somewhere between the carpool and career, we start to wonder if this is really it. Midlife brings reflection — sometimes painful, sometimes liberating — but always transformative.

   
   

8. 49–56 years: The Rebirth

   This is where I am now. The great exhale. The noise softens, and what’s left is clarity. We become more comfortable in our skin and stop chasing approval. There’s a delicious calmness here.

   
   

9. 56–63 years: The Expansion

   We step into mentorship. We share wisdom, not from ego but from heart. We see how every detour was actually part of the path.

   
   

10. 63–70 years: The Freedom Years

    The “I don’t need to prove anything” years. We live by our own rhythm, savoring simplicity.

    
    

11. 70–77 years: The Legacy

    We look back not with regret but with gratitude — seeing the pattern and purpose behind it all.

    
    

12. 77–84 years: The Illumination

    We radiate wisdom. We become living reminders of grace and kindness.

    
    

13. 84–91 years: The Surrender

    The ego softens; love expands. We live from acceptance and gentle awareness.

    
    

14. 91–98 years: The Grace

    We come full circle — curious, playful, and childlike again.

    
    

15. 98–105 years: The Completion

    Deep peace. We’ve done the work, and we rest in the beauty of it all.

    
    

16. 105–112 years: The Transcendence

    Pure consciousness — when the soul smiles and whispers, “That was quite a ride.”

When You’re Stuck Between Cycles

Now, not everyone flows smoothly from one cycle to the next. Sometimes we get a little stuck — we feel flat, confused, restless, or unmotivated. It can feel like you’ve outgrown your old life but haven’t quite landed in the new one.

If you’re in that in-between place, please know: it’s not failure, it’s transition.

Often what holds us back is unfinished emotional business from an earlier cycle. When something painful happens — a loss, rejection, betrayal — and we never really process it, a part of our energy stays lodged there.

So while you might be 49 in years, part of your emotional self might still be 21 and heartbroken, or 14 and afraid, or 7 and unseen. And that younger part can quietly drive your choices — leading to patterns of self-sabotage or chronic dissatisfaction.

For instance, if you were abandoned emotionally at 14, you might still fear being left, even now — so you cling to relationships that don’t serve you, or push people away before they can hurt you.

The goal isn’t to “move on” from those parts of you, but to go back and collect them.To say, “Hey, I see you. You’re safe now. You can come with me.”

That’s integration. That’s healing. That’s how we free ourselves to fully enter the next cycle.

How to Gently Evolve Into Your Next Cycle

Here are some of the practices that help me (and my clients) transition gracefully between cycles:

1. Life Stocktake Journal

   Break your life into 7-year chapters. What stands out in each? What lessons, joys, or heartbreaks defined them? Which parts still feel unresolved?

   
   

2. Meditate on Closure

   Sit quietly and visualize yourself thanking each past version of you. See them as stepping stones that carried you here. Then, imagine opening a door to the next cycle with love and curiosity.

   
   

3. Kinesiology or Energy Work

   Your body remembers what your mind forgets. Kinesiology can reveal where energy is blocked and help release emotions that no longer serve you.

   
   

4. Regression or Inner Child Healing

   Revisit those earlier versions of yourself through guided meditation or therapy. Bring them the compassion they never received at the time.

   
   

5. Create a Ritual of Renewal

   Mindful rituals can assist with energetic shifts. Write down what you’re ready to release from the old cycle, burn it (safely, of course), and then write an intention for the new one.

   
   

6. Surround Yourself with Reflective Souls

   The company you keep matters. Spend time with people who value growth, honesty, and self-awareness. They’ll remind you who you are becoming.

   
   

The Beauty of the 8th Cycle

Being in my 8th cycle feels like finally coming home.

There’s less striving, more allowing.

Less proving, more peace.

Less doing, more being.

I can honestly say that I love this stage — the wisdom, the calm, the humor that comes from not taking myself too seriously anymore. Time no longer feels like a ticking clock; it feels like an ocean — vast, forgiving, and always flowing.

So if you’re on the edge of a new cycle — whether it’s 35 or 49 or 77 — open your heart. Trust that what’s ahead is designed for the version of you who has already earned it.

Each seven-year chapter has shaped you, refined you, softened you. And every single one of them was preparing you for this moment — the one where you finally stop running and start truly living.

Journak Reflection Prompts

💫 What am I ready to release with gratitude?

💫 Which earlier version of me still needs love and closure?

💫 What truth am I now ready to live out loud?

🌙 Life in 7-Year Cycles: The Soul’s Evolution

Cycle	Age Range	Theme / Description	Mantra
1st Cycle	0–7	Foundation & Safety — The world is new and full of wonder. We learn love, belonging, and trust through those who nurture us.	🕊️ “I am safe, loved, and held by life.”
2nd Cycle	7–14	Awakening of Self — Curiosity blooms. We begin to express our individuality and test the edges of independence.	🌱 “It’s safe for me to be me.”
3rd Cycle	14–21	Becoming & Identity — A time of exploration, emotion, and passion. We seek freedom and the truth of who we are.	🔥 “I honor my voice and trust my becoming.”
4th Cycle	21–28	Building & Exploration — We create our adult world — career, love, home — and discover responsibility.	🌍 “I am building a life that reflects my soul.”
5th Cycle	28–35	Refinement & Reality Check — Life invites reflection. We question what’s real, what’s ours, and what’s been inherited.	💫 “I choose growth over comfort.”
6th Cycle	35–42	Deepening & Integration — We crave balance and alignment. Family, health, and purpose come into focus.	🌿 “I am learning to live from my center.”
7th Cycle	42–49	Reckoning & Transformation — The mirror years. We see what’s true, release what’s not, and awaken to our deeper self.	🔮 “I let go of what no longer serves me.”
8th Cycle	49–56	Rebirth & Calm — The great exhale. We move from striving to allowing. Wisdom, peace, and clarity bloom.	🌸 “I flow with life and trust divine timing.”
9th Cycle	56–63	Expansion & Mentorship — We share our light with others. Teaching, guiding, and giving back become natural.	🌞 “My wisdom is a gift to the world.”
10th Cycle	63–70	Freedom & Simplification — Less becomes more. We savor the beauty of the present and live authentically.	🌾 “I am free to live simply and joyfully.”
11th Cycle	70–77	Legacy & Reflection — We integrate the story of our life, seeing how everything fits together in purpose.	🪶 “I am grateful for the journey that shaped me.”
12th Cycle	77–84	Illumination & Grace — The spirit shines through effortlessly. There’s lightness, laughter, and deep peace.	✨ “I radiate peace, love, and wisdom.”
13th Cycle	84–91	Surrender & Peace — The ego softens. Connection replaces striving. Life becomes a prayer of presence.	🌤️ “I surrender to the gentle rhythm of life.”
14th Cycle	91–98	Grace & Innocence — We return to simplicity, play, and wonder — childlike, but with the wisdom of a sage.	🧚 “I live in wonder and joy.”
15th Cycle	98–105	Completion & Wholeness — A deep peace arrives. The body and spirit exist in perfect harmony.	🌺 “I am whole, complete, and at peace.”
16th Cycle	105–112	Transcendence & Unity — Beyond identity. We merge with all that is — pure love, pure consciousness.	🌕 “I am one with all creation.”

✨ Life is Poetry in Motion

Each seven-year cycle offers a sacred invitation — to shed an old skin, to embody a new truth, to love a little deeper.

When we meet each cycle with awareness and an open heart, life becomes less about surviving time and more about dancing with it.

Every seven years, we are reborn — softer, wiser, freer — returning again and again to the truth that we were never meant to stay the same.