One Little Word for 2015

You may be familiar with Ali Edwards' One Little Word that was started back in 2007 and has grown exponentially in popularity. For the last two years, I did not choose a word since beginning this OLW journey in 2009.  Nothing showed up. Nothing spoke to me. And I just wasn't in the frame of mind to find one.

And 2014 was an odd year!  2014 brought lots of changes in my life. (I guess CHANGE would have been a good OLW, in retrospect). But those changes have made me realize what I want for 2015.

My word for 2015 is CREATE.  This time, the word chose me. 

According to Merriam Webster:   

cre·ate verb\krē-ˈāt\

: to make or produce (something) 

: to cause (something new) to exist

: to cause (a particular situation) to exist

: to produce (something new, such as a work of art) y using your talents and imagination

I want to create a healthy lifestyle, a garden that offers me that healthy lifestyle, a healthy home, simple living, art, abundance, open spaces,  laughter, joy, memories.  I want to write more. I intend to write more. That includes more blogging. And more pictures. 

I looked back at some of my old posts and it reminded me what I was involved with over the last couple of years. I really think so much of it lead me to this one little word, create!! And as I create in 2015, I intend to share.

It's funny, as I write the word intend, it makes me wonder how committed actions are behind that word. One of my favorite quotes of all time is by Yoda:  "Do or Do Not.  There is no Try."  And I sometimes wonder whether the word "intend" is best friends with "try."  If that's the case, then I'm changing it to WILL. I WILL write more.  I WILL share more.

But as usual, I digress.

And what about you?  Do you have a word that will guide you, inspire you in the new year? I'd love to hear about it. Not only what your word is, but why that word!

I wish my visitors a peaceful, prosperous, safe, and successful 2015.  And I leave you with this:

jpg from http://yelenabosovik.com
(can't read the photographer's name)

Inspired Canvas of Words

So, remember when I wrote about this beautiful canvas that Leanne made?  And how it inspired me? 

Well, I decided to try my hand at it.  Leslie at Words of Me Project suggested we do something creative each day for 14 days starting January 23rd.  So for the last week, I've been working on making a companion piece to my Truth canvas. 

Using Leanne's recipe, I started by adding paper scraps to a canvas and mod podging the whole thing. 




I wanted to put all three previous words on one canvas, so I needed to make my own removable letters.  I just took some flimsy cardstock letters from one of my paper pads and put Alene's Tack It Over and Over on the backs of the letters.

I added some butterflies (my fave) to give the canvas a little dimension. 

Then painted it white.  I think the layer of paint might have been a little thin, but I told myself from the start that once I made a decision, I was going to embrace it.  There are no mistakes.

Once the paint dried, I removed the letters and sanded some sections.

Outlined the letters, added some some more scraps and sanded some more.  Then found my K&Co. keys.  I actually had another piece of metal in mind, but I couldn't find it to save my soul.  And I really wanted to complete this project. 

This took nearly a week to complete.  I worked on it every night after work.  It's not nearly as beautiful as the one I received, and quite frankly, if Leanne does decide to sell these in her Etsy shop, I would definitely consider picking some up for some friends.  This took longer than I thought it would. 

Oh, and the scraps from the scraps?  I put them in my art journal. 

I'll figure out something for that some other day.   

Now what have you done to feed your creative soul??

Textured Truth

Maybe you read about it over at Leanne's place.  But I wanted to post here.  Since the Cellar Chicks decided on their One Little Word for 2012, Leanne had this vision.  And we all know that when that chick has a vision, beautiful things result. 

So this is the artwork she created for my word, Truth.  Such lovely texture, and a story behind the creation. 

It's a treat to run your hand over it, feeling all the different textures on one piece.  She posted the "recipe" on her blog and it is inspiring me to make a piece with my previous years' words.  Not that I can match her talent, but I'm loving the inspiration!!

Wouldn't it be nice if some of this showed up in her Etsy shoppe??

I think I'm going to spend part of the day creating.  Something.  Just don't know what yet.  But I scored some sheet music yesterday (Thanks, CE) and it's calling to me!!

Have a great Sunday!

One Little Word for 2012

Many of my regular followers are familiar with Ali Edward's One Little Word.  She suggests you identify one word that can be your guiding light for the year.  Similar to a new year's resolution, but different in that it leaves things open for whatever might add to your life experience.  As Ali E says, it "...can be a powerful thing.  It can be a ripple in a pond that changes everything.  It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow."  Sometimes the word picks you instead of you picking the word.

This is the fourth year I've identified a word that I would be my mantra for the year. My words have been Simplify (2011), Serenity (2010), and Gratitude (2009). 

For 2012, my word is  

Truth

1.  sincerity in action, character and utterance

2.  conformity with fact or reality; verity

3.  a verified or indiputable fact, principle, proposition or the like

And it chose me.  As I was driving.  Talking to myself.  Asking questions about others' actions and then I turned it around and asked about my own actions.  And I realized that what I need in my life right now is for me to be honest with myself.  I need to take ownership of things for which I previously blamed (oh, how I dislike that word) others. 

I need to discover and embrace the truth about my relationships.  About weight loss.  About exercise.  About healthy eating.  About homemaking.  About time management. 

I need to be truthful with myself.  And I will not allow myself to believe what Jack Nicholson says...

Oh, yes I can.  Oh, yes I will.  I can't say this will be easy.  I'm a little anxious on moving forward with this.  But I see that as a good thing.  Being anxious heightens awareness.  And then...

All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered. 

The point is to discover them - Galileo

And so the journey begins. 

I'd love to know if you have a word for 2012.  Feel free to share in the comments or to post a link to your blog.  C'mon...what's YOUR word?

Snippets of Thoughts and Catching Up

Yes, I know it's been a while since I posted, and even longer since I came up with my own thoughts.  I can't tell you how many partially started posts I have sitting in my dashboard, but none end up seeing the light of day due to my "perfectionism" getting in the way.

So here are some snippets of what I've been up to lately --

I'm back at work after taking six weeks off after my kidney surgery.  It's a madhouse there, but that's to be expected at this time of year.  Gotta get those kids registered for classes in the fall!!  I am forever indebted to my replacement for those six weeks.  I promise, LS, I'll make it up to you!!!!

During my time off I played with some art journaling and painting.  Don't have a lot of confidence in what I do.  Maybe I need to take one of those online classes that will teach me to let myself go!!

I've got some things planted in the garden.  It's not complete, but this spring weather has just not cooperated enough now that I'm feeling up to planting things.  But thanks to my PG's help in turning over the garden, it's gonna be a beauty this year!!!

Now if I can just keep this little guy away from some of these new plants.  FYI: Blood meal seems to work!! Just don't overuse it...it's high in nitrogen!

And just for my Texas Sisters, here's the cactus affectionately known as the HEW/HaneyBob cactus that gets pushed outdoors each summer.

As many of you may remember, my "word of the year" is SIMPLIFY.  I'm having a rough go of it so, sure enough, one day in my inbox comes and email with a note from the Universe via http://www.tut.com/ that gives me the simple words that will be my mantra.  This is paraphrased and it's what I wrote on my whiteboard:

Know what you want

and move toward it every day.

Pretty simple, right?  But isn't that how those who are most focused on their goals work?  And for some reason, it is a stress/anxiety reliever for me.  So that's my phrase of the day for the rest of this year!!

I'm heading to the Scrap Cellar this Saturday and I'm wiggle-butt excited about it.  Last time I was with the Scrap Chicks was the day before I found out about the kidney tumors, so we are in desperate need to get together. 

You may have noticed my new header.  It was decided that I needed a header that got me away from my computer and out into my garden.  My blog header creator extraordinaire, Scrap Chick, and BFF Leanne, over at From Chaos Comes Happiness, created this header with my PG doing his favorite yard thing.  (LOVE the smell of freshly mowed lawns, don't you??).  If you think your header needs a little personalization, Leanne's the one to contact!

At least for the next week or so, I'm soaking up the last few days of "voyeurism" while watching the not so little eaglets practice wing flapping at the Decorah eagles website.  They will probably fledge within a week and I can't tell you how grateful I am that I've had the opportunity to watch them grow from the time they were a couple weeks old.  What a fantastic project they've got going there! 

So that's what's happening in my little world.  I encourage you to stop by the links I've posted today.  There's some good stuff out there!!  And feel free to leave a comment (if Blogger will let you).  Would love to know you stopped by!!

My Creative Journey (this month)

I've been busy, busy, busy getting my Craft Cave organized.  For too long, things have gotten away from me and it's been so crowded in the Cave that I couldn't even work in there.  So, inspired by a couple of Big Picture Classes that I am taking/have taken, I'm holding true to my word of the year, SIMPLIFY. 

I've whittled down my paperstock (way too much for one woman to have -- and I really don't even like some of it!!), organized and labeled my embellishments

and alphas, 

and ROYGBIV'd my cardstock. 

By the time I complete my class to Find Your Way at BPC, I should have a good idea of what type of layouts are the ones that work for me. That will allow me to whittle down the paperstock even more.  And I will be able to

embrace imperfection in my layouts, because it really is all about the memories!!

When I'm not in the Cave, I've been going thru pictures, sorting, dating and getting them into plain jane albums (with my PG's help) that will help me find what I want when I want to scrap a page. 

So that's what's been on my creative radar this week.  But I also wanted to share this little tidbit with you.

Back in April 2005, a group of girls got together at my girlfriend's house to work on vision boards.  (A digital version of it can be seen on Leanne's blog, here).  As I was organizing my cave, I turned around to notice that my vision board

 was behind a cork board that had this poster on it. 

Now, I don't want to get all Freudian on you, but I couldn't help but chuckle when I thought about how I was covering up my vision, yet telling myself to keep in touch with my dreams. 

So I ask you...have you been covering up your vision?  Is it front and center so that you can keep in touch with your dreams?   

Have a great Sunday, y'all!

My 2011 Word

As I mentioned yesterday, my 2010 word (Serenity) wasn't as successful as I'd hoped.  So I did some soul searching on why it was harder for me to embrace and I realized that my life has too much stuff in it. Call it disorganization, call it clutter, call it my past!  But it's time for change. It's time to declutter. It's time to SIMPLIFY.

sim pli fy  verb

a.-  to reduce to basic essentials

b.-  to diminish in scope or complexity

c.-   to make more intelligible; clarify

Yep, that's my word for 2011 - SIMPLIFY. What's so funny is that as I say the word, I experience an AHHHHH moment. Have you ever had one of those? Where just one word fills you with serenity and peace? Where you feel all sorts of gratitude?? Wait, what's this? A connection with ALL of my words??  Hmmmm.... interesting. Maybe that's the way it's suppose to work!

I started to approach my blog buddy/Scrap Cellar Chick Leanne to help me out with creating a visual for my word. Then it dawned on me (don't you just love/hate those "duh" moments?)...KISS! Keep It Simple, Superstar! (yeah, I know it's usually "stupid" and not "superstar" but I'm not about to call myself stupid!!).
And so, this is my first step into SIMPLIFY!  Can't get any simpler, right??

And here's my plan for 2011...There are so many people in this world who need things. And there are so many things in this place I call home that it's time I get the two of those situations to meet up. It's time for me to SIMPLIFY. And it's not just my home. It's my diet, my scrapbooking, my relationships. I don't believe we were put on this earth to lead complicated, cluttered lives. I believe we serve God best by simply being our uncomplicated, uncluttered, simplified selves.

Funny thing about these one little words -- once you pick the word (or it picks you) you start moving in that direction.  You start wanting it in your life.  Every day, all the time.  How cool is that?!!??

I'm headed over to Leanne's.  She's got a linky thing going for our words for 2011.  And, of course, a thank you to Ali Edwards on starting this revolution.

2010 Word of the Year Review

 Hard to believe it's been a year since I selected my Word of the Year.   Inspired by Ali Edwards, and nudged by my friend Leanne, I began this Word of the Year journey in 2009.  Ali E. says it like this: "A single word can be a powerful thing. It can be the ripple in the pond that changes everything. It can sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow...One little word can have big meaning in your life if you allow yourself to be open to the possibilities." Tangible, intangible, feeling, thought, emotion.  It can be any of those.

 

Charm by Lisa Leonard Design

 My first word was Gratitude.  That word and the gift of a word charm from Leanne helped make it a gratitude-filled year.  What's nice is that this word had such an impact on my life, that I literally saw a shift in how I look at things, how I react to things.  HUGE impact!

Found at a little out of the
way place in Arkansas

My 2010 word is Serenity.  I had a much more difficult time searching for serenity in my life this year.  Mostly because I didn't focus on the word as I should have.  Oh, there were spurts.  And how wonderful those were.  But overall, not so successful with increasing the serenity in my life.  

So here we are, just a few steps away from entering 2011.  It seems like only a couple years ago that we went thru the Y2K craziness.  It's now time for me to choose my 2011 Word of the Year.  I've got it and will share it with you before we wrap up 2010.

So what will your One Little Word for 2011 be? 

My 2010 Word

My word for 2010 came to me about a month ago. It's funny how when you decide on the word, you actually see/hear it often. You "own" your word. You actually say to yourself, "Hey, that's my word" when you hear or see it.

My word is SERENITY.

se-REN-i-ty

1. The state or quality of being serene, unruffled, tranquil.

2. Clearness, brightness.

So, what is it about SERENITY that makes it my word, you ask. Okay, so maybe you didn't ask, but as long as you're still reading, I'm assuming you're a little curious.

In 2008, I was involved with a mindfulness program as part of my wellness journey after breast cancer.  One of the things we learned in the program was meditation.  Although it wasn't an easy thing to learn (and I certainly haven't mastered it), I persisted and learned that there is an amazingly tranquil feeling you get when you meditate.  You can feel so rested without having slept.  I crave that tranquility in my life right now. 

I want to handle things in my life without getting flustered.  I know I'm better at that than I was a few years ago, but I want more of that.  I want to walk through my somewhat organized home and feel the tranquility.  I want to feel the goodness all around me and I know when you come from serenity, it's much easier to do.  I want to find the serenity in photography.  I know I've made a start, but I want more of it.  I want to feel the strength you feel when you are tranquil.

I thought about whether I wanted to have the word PEACE for my 2010 word (which is what my blog buddy Leanne had as her word of the year in 2008).  But SERENITY speaks to me as "peace within" if that makes any sense.  And I firmly believe that when you work on the peace within, you actuate peace all around. 

I have two dear friends who are also posting their Word for the Year today.  Please visit Leanne's blog and Cindi's blog for their words and what their thoughts are behind their choice.  And as I mentioned in yesterday's post, the original idea came from Ali Edwards.  You can read about her words here. 

I challenge you to come up with your word for the new year.  Make it something that inspires you.  Make it something that nags you, nudges you, tickles you.  Make it something that fills you with passion.  Just know that something as simple as a single word can have a huge impact on your life.