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Monday, January 4

2021 Word of the Year - GRACE

We've done 'Slow,' 'Rejuvenate,' 'Experience,' and 'Joy,' but our Word of the Year for 2021 is 'Grace.'  Last year rated an 11 on the suck-o-meter.....everyone is pretty strung out at this point, and that means that tempers are quicker to flare.  Something I can personally work on, and I'm sure many others would probably agree also, is extending grace to others...and also to myself...

Revisiting Past Words
What lessons have I learned?
  • Saying 'no' may upset people, but it really frees you up to devote yourself to the things you've already said 'yes' to.
  • Finding joy in simple things, and practicing finding it, helps you to re-center.
  • Saying 'yes' to life is sometimes as simple as putting down your phone.  
Favorite books for life lessons?
My favorites are the "365 Devotions for..." series.  The readings are short and I keep one of them on the toilet tank each year.  I know...I know...but that's when I usually get thirty seconds of peace!

'Grace' is our word of the year because it's time we (that's the universal we, myself included) learned to extend grace to both ourselves and those around us.  This may include loved ones, sometimes friends, or those we deem 'enemies.'  Grace is simply a matter of doling out kindness, even if you don't think it is deserved...

Some ways you can extend grace to others today :
  • Hold the door or help carry items
  • Extend a smile or compliment to those you meet
  • Respond to the verbal bully with a nice word (you just might be surprised!)
  • Don't react via text or social media
  • Visit with someone who is having a tough time
  • Accept apologies - Forgiveness doesn't mean you have to forget (ie, open yourself up to future hurts), but it will help you heal inside
  • Apologize and ask for forgiveness when you have wronged another
One caveat : grace doesn't mean giving a free pass, however.  We can call others, and ourselves, on 'junk' without doing it unkindly.  

When you learn to love yourself 
You will dissolve all the stones that are cast
Now you will learn to burn the icing sky
To melt the waxen mask
I said to have the gift of true release
This is a peace that will take you higher
~Indigo Girls "Strange Fire"

Getting Started on this Year's Journey....

Here are some of my favorite books to start at the new year.  We read one together as a family, and I usually have a different one for personal use.  Do you have a good one to add to this list? Comment below!
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2 comments:

  1. yvonne8:26 AM CST

    Sometimes I find the hardest one to extend grace to is myself. I often become upset when I don't meet some expectation I think I should have done or be able to do easily. I think this world would be in a better state (feelings wise) if we had grace towards one another.

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