The Irony of Choosing a Word for the Year & Telling You About It in April
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Did you choose a word for the year? How’s that going for you? Here’s my tale of me and my word for the year and hacking a path in the jungle. Because that’s what life is.
Last year was my first to choose “a word for the year”. When something is incredibly trendy and everyone is talking about it, I tend to be a little resistant to jump on the band wagon. If I’m one of the first people to do it, I’m cool with being a cool kid. The rest of the time, I play the skeptic.
So, I was a late-adopter to the Word for the year trend.
Word. (As we said in the 80’s.)
But, last year’s word for the year, PRIORITY, was a good one for me. It reined me in. It kept me in line. Most of the time. It helped focus me on doing the more important things.
This year I chose a word as well, but I’m only now talking about it, in April. My word for the year? Is late. Very, very late.
My word for the year: Revive.
Ironically, our family, and me especially, has spent the bulk of this year ill. REVIVE? Yes, please. We’ll take 8 doses of that, thank you very much.
After years of very healthy kids and a very healthy husband and a mostly healthy self, this year has been rough. I’ve seen the inside of multiple doctor’s offices, labs, and specialists. And I’m not done yet with what’s already on the calendar!
Sinus infections, walking pneumonia, renal stones, eye infections, blepharoconjunctivitis, and at this writing an undiagnosed eye ailment for which I’m taking FishChick10 to the specialist at Children’s hospital early tomorrow morning. Sigh.
Revive me, please.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m super thankful for a myriad of good things:
- extra one-on-one time with whatever kid I’m hauling to a doctor
- good health insurance, including $15 co-pays, no deductible, and cheap prescriptions
- a medical provider that has Sunday hours
- kids old enough to babysit so I don’t have to haul everyone everywhere
- an opportunity to add to my medical knowledge (LOL!)
- “simple” diseases and ailments and not anything complicated or deadly
- this year is an anomaly – please, God, let this first quarter and three days be an anomaly!
I’m tired, and I’m ready for change. I’m ready to get back on my game.
Two years ago that would have been impossible. My hyperthyroid seriously set me back a few paces. However, now that my meds are equalizing things, I’m ready to go.
Not in “ready-to-go-like-a-crazy-person”, but ready to tackle things in a more measured and determined way.
I want to be and feel and act revived.
This past week as I worked through these daily tasks, I printed off a “word for the year” worksheet and got to business thinking about how I want to revive myself this year. It’s never too late. In fact, I’m thinking April is a perfect time for this! 😉
I also brainstormed some things that I think of when I think of REVIVE:
- enliven
- move
- adventure
- risk
- energize
- renew
- refresh
- rest
- fun
- laugh
Funny that rest and adventure would be grouped together, but I think they’re both important parts of this for me.
Do I have this all figured out? No, no, I don’t.
Some people choose their “words” in December and are able to report back on a regular basis about all they’re accomplishing. I’m not one of those people, at least not this year. Ha!
And I’m okay with that. I know what I want, and I know I will see some variation of it happen. I also know that if I don’t try, I’ll be bummed. So I’m gonna try.
I had hoped April would be a completely fresh start, but the last kid to get sick just fell last night and there’s still the undiagnosed stuff to deal with tomorrow.
Is there ever a right time?
Maybe we don’t wait until “the right time” to work on things, though? Is there ever a “right time”? Years ago when Bryan and I were dating, he ran into a pastor friend of ours ran at a cafe who asked him when he was going to propose to me. Bryan said he was waiting for the right time. Reed said, “There’s never a right time to get married. Marriage is hacking a path in the jungle together.”
That has proven to be true for marriage, parenting, and every other part of life. Life is a jungle. You have no clue what you’re doing or what circumstances you’ll find yourself in. At least half of life is making it up as you go along.
So, while I have my “word for the year” all ready to go, here in April, ahem, I am also armed with the knowledge that I don’t know how things are going to play out. What I do know is that I can sprinkle fun, adventure, risk, rest, and liveliness into all the aspects of my life, whether or not I’m exactly where I want to be.
I can “revive” even if it doesn’t look like the 20-pound weight loss and rock hard abs I had envisioned back on January 1.
A girl can dream, right?
Have YOU got a word for the year?
How’s that going for you?
My word this year is ‘connect’. All the family chose a word on New Year’s Day and made it into a poster that’s stuck up on the dining room wall (well, several weeks later my four-year-old chose ‘dance’ but has refused to let us put it up with the others, and my 9-year-old couldn’t choose between love and imagination, so she has both, but in principle…).
I haven’t really done much about it in an organised way but this last weekend I met up with several of my college friends for the first time in ten years, and I’m almost-maybe-one-day-p’raps starting a blog so, y’know, baby steps!
Last year I chose ‘calm’ because at the beginning of the year that’s what I both needed to experience and to be. Again I didn’t do anything organised about it but by the end of the year things did feel, overall, calmer, so just having the thought helps somehow I think. (OK, the youngest going from just-3 to 4 helps too….)
Love this! I hope we can connect later this spring when I come to your neighborhood! 🙂
Often I feel that God gives me definite themes that I need to work on in my life. They rarely coincide with a new year, but they coincide with new stages of my life and faith journey! Sometimes there is one word that stands out; more often, it’s a theme like learning to let go of love of money (aka being miserly and not trusting God to provide), learning to put others before myself, learning to not worry about my body image and appreciate my body as God made me. Those can’t be summed up in one word but they are powerful lessons I’ve learned in recent years. So I skip the word of the year and just try to be faithful to God’s “curriculum” for me throughout the year! With that said…I admire those who did pick a word and I wish your family speedy healing and much revival to you!
Excellent!
Courage! My word has appeared everywhere. I didn’t choose it and felt very timid in my life in general (lack of confidence) but I began to hear over and over to have courage. So then I began to get the picture. Book of Joshua courage! I had never picked a word before either and really just allowed myself to recognize this one has been assigned me!
What a great experience! Can’t wait to see how God blesses you with courage!
My word is ‘rhythm’ – I want to learn to do my duties ‘automatically’.
I had to laugh at this! I just “picked” mine last month by choosing the same word as last year: “enjoy”. I figured it still had meaning to focus myself to remember to enjoy all the moments…I might choose it as a life-word because either I am lazy, or just really focused! lol! Love your plan brain-dump though- it looks like you have your ducks in order despite all those parts you juggle.
Don’t have my ducks in order at all! But, I have a theme song that I keep playing on repeat to remind me to do these things and think this way.
Loved this! My word right now is Survive. Says the tax lady. 😄
Maybe I’ll have a better word after April… Peaceful
You will! I was just thinking of you. Praying that you more than survive! Can I bring you dinner or does Dave have all that under control?
My “word for the year” is “relinquish”. My intent was to relinquish past hurts, anxiety, etc. But so far I’ve had to relinquish my birth plan and my uterus! (in February I had an emergency c-section and hysterectomy). I almost had to relinquish my life and my son’s life. Today I’m having to relinquish my best homeschooling mama friend as she moves 7 hours away. My mom told me to choose a different word – ha! But I think I am learning. And I’m still trying to relinquish the things I originally had in mind.😂
Wow. That is hard. God prunes us. As long as you’re relinquishing to him, I think that’s good. Hang in there!
Revive sounds like a wonderful word for you! You and your family have definitely had a rough start this year health wise. It is challenging to say the least. Hopefully things will turn the corner soon.
I’ve never chosen a word. I’ve read alot about it at different sites but never pulled the proverbial trigger.
If I had to pick a word for this year it would be intentional. I want to be intentional in my spending, meal planning and using up the food in my freezers (although someone keeps posting things that make me change them!) I want to be intentional in my faith, paying it forward, spending time with my family and friends and with being more physically active(come on spring)!
Intentional is a great word. I think you’ve definitely done that with your pantry challenge. Sorry for the distractions. lol!
Lol is right! Seriously I just take what I want off of the new meal plans and take something off the menu and move on. I haven’t had to go buy items when switching recipes so it’s all good!
Thanks for the encouraging words!! I actually made cinnamon rolls yesterday out of part of my bread dough and they were ok. Next time I’ll use a roll recipe and not throw them together in 10 minutes.
Cinnamon rolls are more tender if there’s egg and milk in the dough. But, bread dough should work in general. I made them from pizza dough once. Not the best, but they worked!
Mindful: living in the moment and with purpose
Good one!
Thank you! I so need this right now. And I might have to steal your word for the year. For my birthday all I want is a day of fun with my kids and a date with my husband, I think revive is right on the mark for my year (and probably unrecognized for last year).
I’m happy to share!
My word for 2017 is health. Over the past few years, I have become extremely exhausted, out of shape and run down. Each month I pick one health goal to work on. I carry each goal into the next month. April’s goal is to eat a salad with lunch every day. My previous goals are: drink 64 ounces of water, walk 10 minutes and eat fruit with breakfast. The goals are not mountain moving goals but that is exactly the point. These are easy goals that I can do daily. So far, it’s going pretty good. I don’t meet every goal every day but I get pretty close.
Great way to chip away at your goals!
Thanks for encouraging me to dig through my journal and try to remember what my word for this year is!
And your word is….?
My word is PERSEVERE. I laughed when I found it, because it is still dead on for this year. I’m doing many right and good things that I feel I should be doing this year for our family, but I just need to persevere. Persevere in taking time to deal with attitudes and not just actions in our daughters. Persevere in having personal and children’s devotional time. Persevere in caring for my self well. Persevere!!!! So thanks for the encouragement! 🙂 Stay the course and keep the faith, friend!
Amen!