January 19, 2011

My Words for 2011 (Long Post)

Hi everybody! Hope everyone had a great Wednesday! We're over that hump now, and the weekend is in view!  It's funny how even with a short week, how you can still feel like you've worked the whole time! I'm having a week like that...*sigh* It's okay though...I'm trying to keep my head up and just be grateful, ya know?

Well, this evening I want to tell you about my words for this year. Now I know I'm all late with this, as many bloggers posted about this weeks ago. However, I went back and forth trying to find one that was a good fit for me at this point in my life...before I go any further, let me back up and start at the beginning...Now as much as I like setting goals for myself, I have really become disenchanted with the idea of setting resolutions in the last couple of years. In my 20's, I used to write LONG lists of them in my journals. However, I would start to panic about getting behind on them in February, and become frozen in moving ahead on anything and achieving very little in the 10 months left in the year...has anyone been there? So those SAME goals would end up on my list each year--like a broken record. I didn't feel like I was covering any ground with what I wanted to do in/with my life.

A few years ago, I found out about Ali Edwards' blog and her One Little Word project. I loved how she formed her activities, goals, and even craft projects around her selected word to integrate it into her daily life. So in 2008, I decided on the word maintain. I chose that word because I was unemployed at the time. I didn't expect to experience a lot of personal gains then, but I didn't want to lose ground either.So in a way, it represented stability.  In 2009, my word was excavate. Yea..I know...its a unique word. However, I liked the idea of "chipping" away at "shoulds" and expectations, and get to know myself and discover those unique things that are inside of all of us. God made us like that...I wanted to "chip away" at personal debt and find my way back to financial health, back to goals that I had put on the shelf for "someday," and excavate my home from clutter and things I didn't use anymore...Yep, its a great word! So good, it was my word for  2010 too. I thought about using it this year too. Like a dog with a bone...I didn't want to let it go. However, in revisiting the definition, something struck me funny this time:

ex·ca·vateto make hollow by removing the inner part; make a hole or cavity in; form into a hollow, as by digging: The ground was excavated for a foundation.

Now as much as I love the word, I didn't like that part about being hollow, smh...so I had to find a new word--something that carried the same meaning of excavate/excavation for me, but had something at its core, a foundation. I saw this and thought this is a good one:


So there you go...recover and rebuild are my main words for this year. 

So I've "talked" long enough, and I want to hear from you!! What is your word of the year, and how/why did you pick it? What are some of the things you want to accomplish with your word? Or borrow mine--is there something you want to "rebuild" in 2011? If you've done a scrapbook page or project using your word, post a link in the comments below so I can check it out! One more thing...like Ali Edwards, I have a secret word as well. In 2010, she selected the word athlete. You can read on her journey with that word here. As for mine, you'll have to come back and see, but I think that leg of the journey will be kinda fun! So if you've gotten to this point (and haven't jumped ship, lol), thanks for hanging in there with me! Stop by again soon!
...And That's All She Wrote

1 comment:

  1. Hey Cheryl,
    My word for 2011 is HOME. I chose that word because about 5 months ago, I moved back to my hometown. The house was just that, a house. The people were older, but exactly the same as when I left. The area has hardly nothing left and I was used to big city living. It was not a good feeling. Then the holidays came around and things started to slowly change. That got me thinking that I needed to make the most of it, because for now, this is where I need to be.So that is where my word came from.

    Thanks for visiting my blog. The Eiffel Tower on the wall is a vinyl cling decal.

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