“Approach the new year with resolve to find the opportunities hidden in each new day.” ~Michael Josephson
Choose a word. That’s the advice that’s been going around on the internet and with self help blogs and books. Don’t worry about making long lists of New Year’s Resolutions. Go short. Very short. Distill your resolutions down to one word. One word to remember throughout the year to make life for you and yours better.
Do you know how hard it is for a wordy person like me to come up with one word? To eliminate all those other words and settle on only one word?
Writers are sometimes asked to distill their novels down to two or three sentences. Even better, make it one snappy sentence that holds the essence of the 100,000 words you’ve written to tell that story. One snappy sentence without a lot of ands to keep the ideas running along. I’m terrible at doing that. I want to tell more. I want to tell it all. I think wait, there’s more to the story. Thousands more sentences.
So telling me to settle on one word is asking a lot, but it’s a popular way to stay focused on your resolve, whatever it is. Focus could be my word. Focusing on goals and shutting out distractions sounds good. Or what about hope? Hope is powerful. Hope keeps us working, loving, doing. See, I’ve turned hope into three extra words. But love has to be good. If I let the word love rule my days in 2019 won’t I be happier and the people around me happier too? But somehow that seems too general. Lacks that focus I need for the year.
Joy is a favorite word. Take joy in each day. Find joy in every activity. Expect joy. Put joy in my stories.
I could choose the word write. I need to write a book. But how would that relate to other parts of my life?
Listen. I like that one. Listen, really listen to those I’m with. Don’t always be wanting to push my words over theirs. Listen to the world of nature around me. Listen for guidance from the Lord. Listen for my story and the voices of my characters. Listen for new ideas. Listen for the truth in what I see, read, or hear.
So maybe I’ll test out listen this week. See if it could be my one word resolution.
What one word would you choose or have you chosen this year or in past years?
As always, thanks for reading. See, there’s another good word I could pick. Gratitude. I am grateful for each of you who read my words and join in with the conversation here from time to time.