I can’t remember ever making actual New Year’s resolutions. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve made plenty of resolutions in my life (“My diet starts Monday!”), just never on the occasion of the new year. Resolutions in general tend to have a very short life – think of the crowded gym that gets progressively less crowded over the course of January. Resolutions in my particular life have been a mixed bag. I’m currently on a daily flossing streak that is unbroken since my last dentist appointment in October. I can’t wait until I sit in the hygienist’s chair and when she asks me if I floss I’ll respond, “Does it look like I floss?” I’m viewing it as a science experiment with the hypothesis, “Does daily flossing really make a difference?” But I digress.
As successful as my current flossing resolution has been, I’ve had many failed resolutions, mostly involving things that I will do “every day, no matter what!” Those types of resolutions fail, of course, because all you have to do is miss one day and then the temptation is to say, “Well, there goes that resolution (like all the others I’ve ever made). I may as well have this entire sleeve of Thin Mints.” Then you wave goodbye to the wagon as it rolls off into the sunset.
When 2020 appeared on the horizon I had no interest in making any resolutions, but a couple resolution alternatives presented themselves that I decided to try. The first is creating a one word theme for the year that encapsulates the direction in which I want my life to move during the year. This concept of choosing a yearly one word theme has been around for several years, but seems to be gaining more traction lately. The idea is that this theme will be like a mantra that will remind me of how I want to live, and create a mindset in which action toward that goal is more likely.
It didn’t take me long to come up with my theme for 2020. My word this year is “Create.”
“Create” has two different meanings for me. The first is the most obvious – I want to engage in some creative pursuits that I have been intending to start for a while. This blog! I’ve been wanting to start a blog for many years, probably since I first knew what a blog was. I would read all the most popular “mommy blogs” circa 2005 onward, during which time I was also a mommy of a young child. I loved the idea of sharing my writing within the mommy blogging community, but there was one sticking point – nearly all of those bloggers were also knitting sweaters for the whole family, growing their own organic produce, and living in either Portland, Maine or Portland, Oregon. I didn’t think I would quite fit in with that crafty crowd, but I did admire them. After that the idea of writing a blog sort of simmered on the back burner, mostly but not entirely forgotten.
In 2016 I started a Facebook group called “Nourish and Flourish.” There were about 40 members, all friends or friends-of-friends, and we all had a common interest in living a healthy, mindful life. Many of us were cancer survivors with a new perspective on how we wanted to live our lives. Others were just interested in bringing some healthy balance to their stressful lives. We shared recipes, meditation apps, podcasts, scientific articles – anything that we felt promoted the idea of nourishing our minds, bodies, or spirits. I began writing little mini-essays on my experience as a breast cancer survivor, my battle with anxiety, my thoughts on life in general. At this point the blogging idea came back to the forefront of my mind, and there it stayed.
In addition to the traditional meaning of “Create” I also want to work this year on creating a life that works best for me. A life that reflects my priorities – keeping in touch with family and friends, reading and learning, nourishing myself, being strong – in tangible ways, such as writing four snail mail letters or cards a month, calling my mother every day, keeping track of the books I read in my bullet journal, keeping track of my healthy habits, etc.
Do you have a one word theme for 2020? Even if you don’t want to formally choose a word, what word appeals to you as a theme for the year? I would love to hear what words others come up with.