- April 25, 2024
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Perhaps instead of a list of unattainable resolutions, I can resolve to live this year under the reign of a single word. But perhaps not.
BY EMILY BLACKWOOD | STAFF WRITER
A holiday aimed for fresh starts and new beginnings is often accompanied by mounds of stress.
The rush to create a list of the things I need to accomplish to make my life accurately reflect my Pinterest boards is nothing short of a nightmare. After some creative Googling, I found a nifty idea from Gretchen Rubin, author of “The Happiness Project”:
“There’s a kind of resolution that I’ve never made before, but that has always fascinated me: identifying one idea, often summarized in just one word, as an overarching theme for the entire year.”
Thank you, Gretchen. Now instead of spending hours of intense research on the best ways to avoid fast food and ex-boyfriends, I can simply choose a single word I want to define the next year of my life.
(Can you hear the sound of crickets, too?)
Choosing a word seemed easy at first, but then I realized I didn’t want just any old word. I wanted the best word, something catchy, fun and cute (like moi). But my dictionary app wasn’t loading in the Chick Fil-A drive thru, so I gave up attempting this feat on my own.
That’s when my parents got involved. And like all parents I’m sure, a simple quest for additional opinions turned into a week-long battle for the title of Best Advice Parent.
“What about ‘ascend’?” my dad offered with that lovable “my vocabulary is so much bigger than yours” attitude.
“What is she, an angel?” my mom said, clearly not thinking highly of me at this moment. “How about ‘improvement’?”
The last thing I want people to think is that I belong in the self-help section of a bookstore (although I do quite a bit of reading there).
More words were thrown across the dinner table, getting less and less relevant as more drinks were downed.
“Table, lights, Christmas.” Okay, Mom, now you’re just shouting out things you see. They really weren’t taking this seriously.
In the aftermath of this list of words, I decided not to go with one chosen by my parents. And I fully expect some disappointed texts once this column runs. But at least I have my word.
“Better.” 2014 will simply be better.
After looking for a cool, hip word that I can love for an entire year, I chose to go with something simple. I want to be better. Better at my job, better at my relationships, better at organizing my closet — it works for everything!
OK, but now that I’ve written it a few times, I think I hate it. Is it too late to change?
“Decisive.” In 2014, I will strive to be decisive. (P.S. I hate this word, too. In fact, I now resolve never change my resolutions ... )
Start 2014 with a bang (aka craft project)
I can get very lost in reminiscing and my pack rat habits are hard to let go of. Usually my memories are stored in old shoe boxes or photo albums I never finish. In honor of being better or decisive — or whatever — I'm starting a new tradition.
This 2014 mason jar will serve as a place for all the happy, silly things I'll experience this year. Each time something good or positive takes place, I'll write it down on a scrap of paper and put it in the jar.
So try it out. Maybe when life starts up again and things go a little wrong, looking into the jar might remind you that good things do happen.
