My One Word: Thrive

Hello, friends, and Happy New Year!

We rang in the new year in our new home here in Texas – a new home, new school, new start. I’m happy for fresh starts, you know, despite how I usually drag my feet at the idea of change. Think of that pristine spiral bound notebook at the start of the new school year, writing your name across the clean cover, envisioning all the potential that it invites – there is something about the idea of getting a clean start that fills me with hope.

Because I’m ready for a clean start. As much as I had planned on blogging my way through our recent move, the reality was that selling a house/moving/Christmas was way too much to take on, given all the chaos that was going on in the midst of it. However, all that crazy that was awesome material for posts in December will hopefully make their way here in January, as we are mostly settled in, meaning that at long last, I can find myself some kind of actual routine.

Oh, the relief of it.

And as it is the first of the year, it is also time to settle on my ONE WORD – my word of the year, the one word that will be my focus for the year to come.  Last year, my word was Embrace. And I did – with all the change, with my husband getting a job in Dallas, with him moving here after Labor Day and flying in on weekends, with packing up and selling the house – I embraced all the changes.  I embraced the extra weight that I have been carrying and learned to be more accepting of me for me, and not for my reflection, (not that I still don’t want to improve that same reflection). I did my best, and the word served me well.

I’ve been thinking about my word for the year over the past few weeks, about what I want out of this fresh new start ahead.

And that word is

The definition of thrive is to grow, to develop well, to flourish.

Thriving is a condition beyond mere survival – which is how I felt much of last year. It implies growth and development.

It took a while to settle on thrive. I was thinking a lot about courage – because that is what I need so much more of to accomplish many of the goals I have. Let’s be honest, I’m an anxious person. Learning to let go of some of my anxieties would be an awesome goal for the year. Another word that resonated with me was persevere – because, let’s face it, when the going gets tough, well, I’m on the sofa with a cup of tea and my anxiety to keep me warm until the kids get home from school and I need to put my game face back on.

But the reality is that I need both perseverance and courage in order to thrive, so it all sort of came together. (I don’t think that is cheating.)

I’ve been neglecting my personal health – I want 2015 to be the end of the chronic cough that has been plaguing me for the past few years, or if not the end, just a clear diagnosis of what is causing it. I need to get healthy, not just for me but for my family. For my health, I need more sleep, healthier eating, and exercise. More consistent journaling and finding some sort of meditative activity to help clear my mind are in order, too.

I want my writing to thrive, to flourish – to become more consistent, more meaningful. Or at least more interesting. (You can thank me later.)

I want my relationships with my husband and my children to grow into something deeper. I want to be more present with them, more intentional, and more connected. This means unplugging more, and to accomplish that, it requires more balance, a good routine, and discipline.

Life needs to be more than mere survival.  I want to set roots here in this dusty Texas soil, and to thrive in it.

Did you pick one word for 2015 that sums up your resolutions? If you did, please share!