(Title not meant to refer to Michael Jackson’s 2009 rockumentary of the same name, though let’s face it, the death of Michael Jackson affected me
immensely and I still miss him, RIP MJ)
Every year bloggers across the globe write terribly
thoughtful posts about their word of the year.
What is a word of the year, you ask? Well, allow me to explain.
After all, I need to fill this post with words
about something.
Children, a word of the year is a word that you adopt as a short mantra, one that you
hope will influence your life in a positive way for the year. It is a word that
you can meditate over and remember in good times and hard times, and in all the
in-between times. You choose it to remind you of an area you need to work on in
your life, or for something you want to do more of, or to stop you from being
such a jerk in a problem area. Usually we hope that the word will motivate us
to change for the better, that it will manifest itself into our lives and make
us a supreme version of ourselves.
Not a Supreme, though wouldn’t it be amazing to
have Diana Ross’s hair for just one week?
In choosing a word, I try to think about what I
had such a hard time doing the previous year, something that I struggled with
over and over, something that I wanted desperately to change but couldn’t without
picking a word from my native lexicon that has magical powers to make me a
better version of myself. Last year it was Let Go, two words that reminded me
of the movie Frozen but also inspired me to not let things that my husband
does bug me so much.
It worked, but honestly, I need to Let Go more
and it could be my word of the year for the rest of my years on earth.
But that is boring, so I’m picking another
word. I’m letting you go, Let Go.
My word for 2017? Breathe.
As in: take a beat. Think before you speak. Don’t
say it DON’T SAY IT. Breathe instead. Get back to basics. Simplify and detoxify.
Breathe first, think later.
I thought of this word the other day and was
all – way to go, girl, you found your word! Way. To. Go. Genius. Child.
Then I realized this was my word another year,
I think. I’m too lazy to go back and find the blog post where I chose Breathe
as my WOTY so let’s pretend that I came up with Breathe this year for the first
time and I’m not just recycling words, hmmmmm?
Or just face it. I have deep-seated issues that
maybe can’t be undone in a year by thinking about one word every couple of
days.
Breathe in, breathe out. All the time, all year long.
*******
This post inspired by:
Mama Kat's Writing Workshop
Prompt #2: Did you pick a word for 2017? Share!
Ha! Breathe is always a good word to remember because we always forget to do it.
ReplyDeleteSTFU for a moment - breathe - collect your thoughts - then tackle the things. It's a simple thing but we forget in our busy lives.
You did good girl *fist bump*
Yes! You get me. :) Often I need to remember to breathe so I can avoid being stupid for just a second. Because that crap snowballs.
DeleteLove this!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kerry!
DeleteBreathing is the foundation of being and living, yet isn't it funny how we forget to do this? I love your word of the year. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I love thinking about how to simplify things, because life can easily spin out of control. Getting down to basics has always appealed to me.
DeleteOh breathe is a good one. I can't seem to limit mine to a single word it's kind of Less but also kind of More. Less so I can have more? I don't know.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense to me! Go with it!
DeleteI agree. That is a good one, and one that I think we could all embrace. Best wishes on your word!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I do think that everyone can benefit from remembering to breathe once in a while. After all, we all need to do it!
DeleteBreathe is an excellent word. It helps us to make better decisions and to not say things that will be regretted later down the line.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Making better decisions is something that I always battle with.
DeleteIt's funny because when I went to write down my resolutions, I looked back at the previous years and was like "Oh...I said the same thing then too." At least we're consistent. ;) I love the reminder to breathe. We're so busing GOING and adding items to our to-do lists. Taking a minute to chill out is something all of us moms could get better at!
ReplyDeleteI can always slow down and get back to breathing. Maybe "breathe" should just be my life motto or something.
Delete"Breathe" is a good one for all of us. Stress makes me tighten up my breathing which in turns stops "the flow." You may have recycled it, but it sure works!
ReplyDeleteIt sure does! I never thought about how daily life stress can strangle us and take our breath away.
DeleteI like BREATHE a lot, even though you've already picked it. Every year I want to pick JOY but then I tell myself that's cheating.
ReplyDeleteJust yesterday, while I was walking the dog, I decided my word this year will be KINDNESS.
I know. January 17th and I was finally getting around to picking my word. (Maybe my word should've been TIMELINESS.)
Then I come here today (less than 24 hours later) and discover the subject for your latest post.
Weird.
Anyway. Kindness. I think we're going to need a lot of that in 2017.
Joy is a good one, too. I could use a reminder to acknowledge joy every single day.
DeleteKindness is a great one. I wish everyone thought it was important. And Nice Manners, too. And Fresh Breath. And overall Good Hygiene.
But mostly Kindness.