GConnie

I've put it off long enough. For the past five years I've chosen a single word to frame my year - a word that provides not goals, but guard rails, focus and direction. I struggled with this year before landing on the word - my word for this year will be LISTEN.

What does this mean? I've come to understand that whatever word I choose, the meaning and impact develops over the year. That being said, here is what I see to start.

1. Listening is an action, a conscious decision to hit pause and be present. When my children were little, I found that when paused my busyness and I joined in with whatever they were playing, I learned so much about them. Now that they are adults, the same holds true. I'll humbly say that I do not do so often enough. Not for them and not with others.

2. Listening is learning - new information, new perspectives, new skills. I want to be clear here that I do not believe listening requires that we absorb information with a blank mind. Listening must be done with curiosity and discernment.

3. Listening is more than hearing. If it were a matter of simply hearing the words, it would be much easier. But it is not. We lie to each other. Are the actions consistent with the words ... what is really being communicated? ... Why? What priorities and values are expressed in action?

4. Listening is impactful. What you listen to affects you, sometimes in negative ways. Am I allowing strife, negativity, divisiveness, hatred and anger into my heart - or am I guarding against it - pouring whatever is good and lovely and honorable into my soul.

I've purposefully disconnected somewhat from social media ... obviously not entirely. I've simply grown weary of machines incessantly alerting me to their needs and making suggestions as to what to do with my time. I've resolved in my "sojourn" year to be more present, and for me that means escaping as many electronic notifications as possible. I find them disruptive and almost entirely unimportant. Even the weather is a surprise to me now!

Last weekend I went for a ride in the Owyhees. Even though it was not the best ride, the air smelled of sage, the birds were singing, the wind rustled across the desert brush. Families laughed and chatted as they hiked, and a few head of cattle roamed the open areas. It was a beautiful day in a very special place. As I approached the parking lot I heard loud laughter and music. At one end of the parking area a group of young men were visiting - looking at their phones, talking loudly over their music. I could hear their comments - they were discussing various mushrooms - likely culinary students (or not). Everything around them seemed irrelevant. As I pulled away I thought of how different their experience in the desert that day may have been from mine.

I wondered if they had missed it - a chance to hear the birds, to breath in the wide open spaces, to hear the steady beat of a horses hooves in the sand. In that moment, it occurred to me that I am not disconnected. I am instead becoming more and more connected.

If Christmas inspires reminiscing, then the new year certainly inspires resolutions .... the promise of days and weeks unsoiled by the grit of life. For the past five years I have been part of the resistance. No resolutions made and no goals set. Instead, during the pause at yearend, I select a single word to form the guardrails along the coming year. It is out of focus and commitment to this single word, that I will form my goals and priorities. Life has a way of pulling us off of the path, and a single word can remind us and pull us back. Last year the word I chose was "wholehearted" which started the year meaning that I would bring my best self to my family and my business. As the year progressed, however, "wholehearted" came to mean so much more. Dedication, persistence, perseverance.

This year, I've selected the word "SOJOURN". A technical definition is a short stay or visit while travelling. The meaning this word holds for me at the beginning of this year threefold:

1. Perspective - I was told once by some very wise women not to sweat the small stuff - and its all small stuff. This is also the year for a big birthday for me - just a number I know, but ....
2. Presence - Mindful of what has come before me and of what will come after me, I will be present here and now. I'll not be hobbled by the past, nor am I borrowing worries from the future.
3. Love - the greatest of all - fuel for the journey. That which is truly essential.

The first step to using a word for your year, is to get the word into the heart of your being - reminders, quiet contemplation, digesting the writings of others on this word. I like to look up quotes using my chosen word. I'm sharing one quote in this post. I surround myself with this word. Next I give thought to how this word could possibly impact me - this can include goal setting or a vision board - but that is not required. In what ways do I expect this word to inspire and challenge me? How will I grow? Who will I become? I look forward to being surprised and humbled through the year, as each and every time, the word I choose in January far surpasses anything I could have hope or imagined when I initially choose the word!

So here's to 2021 and my Sojourn here. May it be a year of perspective, presence and love.

The only way to predict the future …. is to create it.

It is in every ad every newscast, facebook posts, and daily conversations - "in these uncertain times" "in these unprecedented times". The perpetual knot in my stomach - the ache in my heart - as I go through my daily tasks.

And then I remembered - my focus this year is to live wholehearted - and this means bringing my best self every day - with all of my flaws and weaknesses - every day. The only way to build hope, courage, strength, and talents, is to exercise them. Not in destruction, not in harm to other humans, but in a way that builds others up, that inspires others to also bring their best. The world needs our best.

So "in these uncertain times" I will not cower or retreat in despair. I will stand up for what is right and stand against what is evil. And I will do so with my own heart. The world has seen "times" like this before. It is a broken world and things aren't the way they are supposed to be. Today … I will do my best, I will rest and not quit, I will work on my own heart.