A Word For The Year

" I don't want to get to the end of my life and find I just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well." - Diane Ackerman

I don't make New Years Resolutions.

Instead, I select a word for the year. The word I choose along with my faith is what guides me through the year. It becomes a filter for how I make decisions.

In addition, I create a check-in question to accompany the word and during times of personal reflection, I use the question to gauge how well I am doing.

This is the fourth year I've selected a word.

Year One: my word was DISCIPLINE.

Year Two: my word was CHANGE.

Year Three: my word was COMMITMENT.

This year my word is LIVE.

Every year when I select a word there is always a deeper meaning associated with it. The first year, discipline was my focus. I wanted to bring more structure and order to my life and to create good habits that have remained important to me.

The year of change was my desire to have my life look significantly different than the year prior. A lot did change for me in 2014, but many of the changes were not initiated by me, but instead by life. But the greatest change to come out of that year was not what was happening around me, but what was taking place within me. It was a year of personal growth and a deeper development of faith.

Last year my word was about being committed to myself and to God. It was my opportunity to honor myself and my dreams. I often spent time putting other people first and in the process, I was left behind. The decision to let the word commitment guide me for 2015 resulted in not only strengthening my relationship with God but also in me taking steps to work on my God-inspired dreams, such as writing and launching wordsbytara.com.

This year I choose the word LIVE because I want to embrace life to the fullest. I desire to be open to new opportunities, people, and experiences. This year I will LIVE by saying "yes" more than I say "no".

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What word would you choose and what would be the meaning behind it? Send me an email and let me know.

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