Choose your word

Hello. Thank you all for joining in the 'Word for the year', some excellent ideas there. Inspiration for me to write this blog post, so here are a few comments on what comes to mind when I read them.  They are all good ones, all chosen because they mean something special to you.

Hope. A great one to start off with. We all need hope, that things are going to turn out right, and that we don't encounter too many problems throughout the year. Hope brings us something to look forward to.

Positive. Keeping a positive state of mind does not come easily to everyone, there are ups and downs. Sometimes the negatives are overwhelming. I find it helps if I remember that time moves on, and every day is not the same. I have had negative thoughts in the past, everyone does at some point, but as I often say, you can't change what has already happened and a new day is always a fresh new start. I tell myself I will not let the negatives swallow me up, and I look for positives to replace them. When something goes wrong, I  think it could have been much worse.

Calm. A good one. How to stay calm when all around you is madness? No one can say how they are going to react to a certain situation, you don't know until it happens. You can practice being calm by putting some distance between you and the madness. Walk away, find a quiet place, and breath deeply. Give yourself  time to work things through.

Fragrant. Aaah, yes, smells, these can bring a sense of calm. I love freshly cut grass, the perfume from the lime tree at the end of the road, freshly percolated coffee, walking past a chippy, to name a few.

Kind. Yes, another good one, it doesn't take much effort to be kind. Thank you for suggesting Luke Cameron's Good Deed Diary. He is a very kind man and did a good deed every day of the year.

One reader chose a phrase, 'Have some more fun'. Well I totally agree with this one, you can never have too much fun. It's easy to find and needn't cost too much, there are lots of fun things to do which are free. I like to revert back to childhood and have silly fun. I let my ideas run free. Every time I come across friends with kids in the street, I always talk to the kids. I love to see babies smile and kids chuckle. They must think I am a little bit bonkers. Make life fun for others and you will have fun yourself.

Streamline. The reader suggests declutter, simplify, and lose weight. Three good ways to streamline your life. Other related words I can think of are, pruning, trimming, dumping, and ignoring.

Mortgage. Yep, you could have a year of attacking it with every spare penny you have. Knock it down and destroy it.

Natural. The reader is thinking of fibres, wood, stone, and authenticity. These all bring a sense of calm and bring you closer to nature.

Cheerful. I'm all for this. Nobody likes a misery guts, be brave, show the world you are a smiley person.

Light. The more light we can get on our bodies the better. I like to get outdoors as much as I can. I like natural lights in the sky from the stars, the sun and moon. I like to see someone's face light up with a big smile. I like the flickering lights from candles.

Listen. Even the howling wind is good to listen to, it's loud today. Don't you just love to hear sheep calling to each other, and the eerie sound of an owl. I like the whirring of a helicopter, and the chuff chuff of a steam train.

Peace. The reader talks of inner peace, calming down thoughts. Sometimes it is hard to switch off, I sometimes have difficulty. I try distraction, to keep busy, do something else. I sometimes find I have to make a conscious effort to block things from my mind. It usually works and I can move on.

Positive. Having something to look forward to is good for positive thoughts. The reader has some changes on the horizon and is excited. Good for you. I will keep positive for you. Positives are empowering, negatives are detrimental.

Cozy. as in a nice place to live, home, happy, warm, sanctuary. Can't argue with that.

Reduce reuse recycle. Yep, good for the planet, use up what you already have. Buy second hand, gratefully accept hand me downs, keep your purse closed.

Gratitude. One of my favourite words. Every day I am grateful that I am still here. Life is an amazing gift.

Smile. Yes, let's all smile. What's that song, Smile when heart is breaking, my goodness I've had lots of those. My heart has been smashed into smithereens, but here I am, fully recovered, and smiling.

Determination. Love that one. If someone tells me I can't do something, my response is, I'll show you who can't. Come back later when I've done it. If you really want to do something you will do it.

What a great selection of words, thank you all for sharing. If anyone hasn't yet chosen one, why not pick one off the list.

And my colour for today is ...........

There are tons of berries still up there.

Dog poo bin. All these trees will be pollarded.

That's all for now, going to do a bit of sewing while I watch catch up. Have a nice weekend.
Toodle pip