What’s Your Word for 2019?

Every January, I pick a word to guide me through the new year. Or rather, I let the word pick me. It usually comes to me during quiet moments and then the universe finds a way to confirm my selection, gently giving me a thumbs-up to let me know I’ve hit the target. 

My word this year is Dream. It came to me one night when I was hiding in my dark bedroom, meditating. I could hear my kids outside the door, threatening to bust in at any moment and destroy my peace. Despite the distractions, the word “dream” fell over me, almost like a soft rain. 

A few days later, in morning carline, I asked my nine-year-old daughter what she thought my 2019 buzzword should be, and she said, quite thoughtfully, “Hmmm, maybe Spirit. Or Dream.” I gave the universe a thankful wink because I knew then that Dream was my 2019 guiding word.

I highly recommend finding a word to light your way through 2019. Your word can be anything that pulls you closer to where you want to be. It’s a nudge and a reminder, a road sign to keep you on the right path. It’s inspiring and loving, (never shaming), designed to lift you up even when life gives you the occasional punch to the gut. It aims to keep you centered, even in the midst of kids, husbands, jobs, and laundry.

Some suggestions are light, joy, breathe, exhale, laugh, acceptance, clean, let go, love, bliss, gratitude, or peace.

The beauty of it is that your word may resonate with you on many different levels. For me, dream is an invitation to re-discover what lights my fire and follow that flame. It’s also my wish for better sleep, the oh-so-glorious sleep that makes me wake up clear-headed, refreshed, and ready to take on the challenges of work and family life. Your word will take on different meanings throughout the year, based on the twists and turns that 2019 brings.

As moms, it’s so easy for us to get so entangled in our children that we forget that we are actually living, breathing human beings with needs and interests. It’s almost a badge of honor to neglect ourselves and be “selfless.” Picking an annual guiding word is something we can do for ourselves to remind us that we are still vibrant people, relevant outside of making meals, carpooling kids to soccer, and struggling through middle school math homework. 

The new year is a fresh start, a blank page to start your own story over again or pick up where you left off. You choose how you fill that page and what you’ll focus on as you wander through the next 365 days. I for one will be filling my page with dreams.