OLW 2017

 

Each year I choose a word to colour my year- to help me shine a perspective on the year ahead that will help me grow and change, help me become more me. Past words include...

2008: Focus

2009: Healthy

2010: Brilliant

2011: Better + Habit

2012: Simple

2013: Story

2014: Be (Present)

2015: Together + Nourish

2016: Joy

My One Little Word for
2017: Light 

Light entered the word race late this year with three other contenders seeming much more likely in the lead up to the first of January. But New Years Eve Light popped up and I finally felt completely content with one of the options.

This year promises to be a huge year with a couple of big things looming on the horizon like a return to work! And a special project. At the moment I am very much wallowing in the dark bit of despair on the diagram above and hoping to shine some light on the situation and actually get somewhere sometime soon (Hint: School goes back tomorrow). No matter what though it's going to be a long hard year with lots of mountains to climb... the destination should be fabulous... with life being more meaningful, more inspired, more creative, more fun and happy, joyful even.

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no 'brief candle' to me. It is sort of a splendid torch which I have a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it over to future generations.

~ George Bernard Shaw

So where's the light? This year I want to...

• I want there to finally be a light in my eyes
• I want to...be a bringer of light.
• I want to... light my soul up.
• I want to...lighten the darker corners of my mind
• I want to...lighten up 
• I want to...be physically lighter.
• I want to... lighten the material load at home.
• I want to... illuminate my home in the world.
• I want to... be a guiding light, especially for my children
• I want to... be light-hearted

Joy can be real only if people look on their life as a service, and have a definite object in life outside themselves and their personal happiness.

~Leo Tolstoy

I came up with a bunch of light inspired Synonyms to inspire me as well....

ablaze, luminescence, placid, quiet, effervescent, airy, agile, aglow, aspect, clear, beam, beacon, illuminated, ethereal, gleam, glare, sparkle, highlight, ignite, ignited, illuminate, spotlight, spry, glisten, glimmer, glint, feather-light, fire, straightforward, sunbeam, twinkle, uncomplicated, sunny, flame, light-footed, dazzle, emblazon, halo, inflame, nimble, lightweight, ray, rekindle, limelight, flare, fluid, fluorescence, glitter, light-hearted, glossy, spark, star, tranquil, peaceful, illumination, shine, incandescence, blaze, bright, brighten, brightened, transparent, brilliant, daybreak, enlightenment radiance serene sheen, glow, shimmer, gossamer, luminary, radiate, shiny, lustre, radiant, insight, kindle, luminous. 

Joy comes from being vulnerable and courageous. Even if everyone else thinks you are nuts, step out of your comfort zone. Courage will build slowly. I promise. I’ve been there. Anyway, what is the worst that could happen? Someone might not approve? Take risks for joy. Sometimes just saying YES can set your whole life into motion.

From Lil Blue Boo

 Here's the aim.... Glorious!
We'll see how I go.

 

Right Now

Right now I am:

~ looking at my One Little Word for the year.
~ loving the perspective that my best friend is bringing to my life.
~ thankful that school goes back tomorrow.
~ inspired by other OLW course participants.
~ savouring the time before I find and start a job.
~ reading The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown, again... already got whacked over the head in the preface.
~ swooning over this and this.
~ enjoying Nerdette Podcast lately.
~ feeling overwhelmed by the year ahead.
~ counting the hours till the school bell rings.
~ tasting Jelly Babies... I prefer snakes but I messed up.
~ wondering how Tama is going to go tomorrow, he's not looking forward to it.
~ making the first months pages for my One Little Word Album
~ wishing it was January 2018 already.
~ hoping that my freaking car sells soon.
~ glad that I will be home alone tomorrow.
~ listening Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday on Radio Paradise
~ seeing too much Trump on the internet.
~ dreaming of an easier, more relaxed life.
~ thinking about my plans for the year.
~ anticipating something big.
~ going frustratingly slowly.
~ grateful for the love and encouragement of a friend.
~in awe of people who have their shit together.

Light up the week

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Flora on Friday

 

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Wordless Wednesday

 

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Some things I said... stop the fear, keep perspective.

I posted this on Facebook a while back it's worth sharing...

World events have always been pretty messed up. The media provides us with no perspective and the inequality and self interest of the media is completely skewed. 

There were approximately 10 days in 2016 that did not had some sort of terrorist incident- many of the other days had multiple incidents... how many did you hear about? 

The collective deaths in 2015 in the 17 worst countries was approx 169,652. 204,687 Syrians have died in the past 3 years. A person is murdered on average every hour in El Salvador. 

But for comparisons sake in the year 2000 (best stats I can find) 520,00 died through homicide, 815,000 via Suicide and 310,000 war related. ONLY 149,000 of those lives were in high income countries. (Our suicide rate in the western pacific is 22/100,00 that's crazy!) 

But while those 1.6 million people died in 2000 due to violent and self inflicted means 6,081,000, 000 people didn't die from some awful means. 6 BILLION and 81 MILLION!

Sure I'll give you that a very small proportion (probably less than 100,000) of that 6.81 BIL were inflicting those painful deaths- but that still leaves 6.8 BIL people not killing. And I'll give you that probably twice as many people as died got injured. And 1.6 million mothers alongside 1.6 million fathers buried their children- if they weren't, indeed, already dead from the ongoing conflicts. There were also siblings and extended family affected personally by these deaths- and business owners in the region as well. But even if we very generously put that number at the whole 81 million.... what about the 6 BILLION other people NOT affected- 6 billion people living their lives, loving the families and caring about others- not considered newsworthy, not to be feared. 6 BILLION and that was in 2000 now our population is 7.4 Billion now there is more like 7 BILLION unharmed people on this planet- going around not harming people. 

Thinking of the 17 worst countries none of them are anywhere near Australia and with the exception of maybe Egypt (who doesn't want to see the Pyramids) none of them are you ever likely to want to visit- Iraq and Somalia have never been high on my list. 

You have been fed a media diet of gloom, doom, disaster and fear. It is paralysing, and mind warping. 

Imagine if all the fearful people instead of whinging to the media/government about not letting migrants in spent their time volunteering for Amnesty international and actively campaigned to their governments to work with WHO and the UN to end all the shit things not happening where we are. Or demanded our government put money in to mental health and education, and international aid. 

YOU are as SAFE as you have ever been, safer according to violent crime stats in this country (Australia).

I'm not scared. 

There are millions, billions of people all over the world who are doing well, doing good, doing ok. Who are loving their children, families, animals and nature. Who are caring for their friends and their community. 

They are everywhere I look. They live on my street, they live in the bush, the desert, they live in the USA, Israel, Gabon, Tokyo. Every time I go out I see them all around- they help my kids cross the road, they make sure the trolleys get back to the supermarket, they grow my vegies, they manage my bank, some guard the jails, some are in the jails, some are in psychiatric treatment and others are not, they life guard where we swim, and work in a hardware store. 

Some of them are rich, some are poor and most lay somewhere in between. 

Some are less friendly than others, some more. 

Some of them are so intelligent and by western standards many are not- most fall in-between. 

Some of them think things that I don't agree with, but I don't care- it's their right to think what they want. 

But there are literally billions of humans being everywhere all around the world. And they outnumber the terrorists, extremists, rapists, and killers- they outnumber all the messed up people doing truly awful stuff by probably a million to one. 

It's awesome I love living in this world, it's full of remarkable things from lady birds, to Cherry Blossom, to the Amazon jungle and people- lots and lots of super amazing, interesting, colourful, surprising, lovely people. They don't make the news though- because it's not new- it's been that way all along- and it will continue for as long as there are people on the planet.

Here are a couple of great examples why it's better to love loud than to support fear....

A Human of New York

History Tells Us What May Happen Next

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Skype Hype

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Lesmurdie Falls Running

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Friendly Kookaburra!

Throwing and catching snails!

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Faction Carnival

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