I’ve been interested in the new practice of choosing a word for the year and using that chosen word to help guide priorities and focus. So a few days ago I started casting about for options. The ones that I came up with were “appreciate,” “live fully,” “experience,” “discover,” and “create.” I wrote these down in a notebook and decided to mull them over before choosing one of them.
Then yesterday, another word came to me. It was “light.” It’s about savoring the natural light of the world, especially the sunrises and sunsets here in the desert. Of being more light by decluttering and lessening my footprint on the planet. And of bringing the light of constructive energy to our world including wildlife and people.
I wondered if light was too unusual a word to use for reframing 2023 as it is a noun and not an action verb like “discover.” So I looked around and found that some other instances of its use for this purpose including this blog post that also mentions decluttering and positive energy:
So that reassured me that I was not completely alone in my new focus on light. And it seems like a fitting word for the year that includes a very special trip to Norway on a Hurtigruten expedition ship to hopefully see the Northern Lights. That journey begins in February.
My only traditional resolution is to finish my book manuscript and to try to publish it either through a mainstream publisher or by self-publishing. And I plan to send more writing out into the world in general this year. Maybe that somehow also falls under the umbrella of light.
Diane Carmony 