Tag Archives: #OneWord365

Word of the Year 2023

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Greetings and Happy New Year my beloveds! Did you even notice I took a little sabbatical over the holidays? No worries… here I am back in your inbox for another week and another brand new year!

If you’ve been following along, you’ll remember that I no longer subscribe to resolutions or goals at the beginning of new calendars, but have adopted the practice of picking a #wordoftheyear. You are welcome to check past posts or my Pinterest board dedicated to such endeavours. Here are some links:

And so the time has rolled around once more for a new word to embody my feelings and actions for 2023. Are you ready for the reveal?! Here it is:

REFRESH

Perhaps many of you are feeling it this year as well. Refresh. Not “freshen” or “fresh” but “Refresh” as in — again. Here’s the definition I found in Oxford’s dictionary:

re·fresh

/rəˈfreSH/

verb

  1. give new strength or energy to; reinvigorate.” the shower had refreshed her”

Sigh. That’s where I am feelin’ this year is going to go. It’s the kind of revamp your computer and “refresh” your screen kinda thing. When you have too many tabs open and everything is slow and sluggish. Covid has done a big number on so many of us and I’m feeling we all need to hit the refresh button!

It’s like you’ve been working hard in the hot sun and you finally sit down for a second or two to cool off with a fresh lemonade… but it’s not always sweet. Sometimes you need a little spike to quench the heat. It’s the same in life. You need a cool-off that clears the palate without adding the fillers or sugar coating. A little shock value to reset and refocus. It’s only then that we can carry on with the hard work. It’s what I am manifesting this year. A refresh.

It’s shaping up to be a full year for the Mitton crew and some big changes are coming down the pipes: two of us have milestone birthdays, I am so going to dye my hair, and the kids are getting older and flexing their wings ready to fly from the nest. Will the hubby and I survive? Are we ready for the next stages? Will he like my hair? Refresh.

The Bible refers to this state of “refreshing” after an extended period of lamenting. The time of sitting in ashes and fasting is followed by a time of “getting up, washing, eating a good meal, dressing in clean garments” and moving on with life! That’s what I wish this year to be. There is a time for lamenting and feeling sad… reflection even. Then, there is a time to scrub yourself clean from the past and go out into the world ready to face the next step! Refreshed.

“REFRESH” photo by: Tadeusz-Lacota (Unsplash)

Are you with me? Will mittonmusings change? Maybe. Will life change? Certainly. It usually does — whether we want it to or not. I’m ready for the Refresh this year! Join me to see how it all pans out!

#WordoftheYear 2022

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Well, we made it to another year… kicking and screaming, maybe, but here we are! It’s been a rollercoaster of ups and downs again in 2021, with the global pandemic hanging over us yet again. Still, time travels on. A constant in this world of upheaval. Time doesn’t seem to stop for anyone… or anything. And so we arrive at 2022.

As many of you will recall, for 2021, I chose a #wordoftheyear. It was my first attempt at such a thing, and I think it went off rather well. (You can read some of those thoughts here) It’s different from a resolution or goal… it can be interpreted differently throughout the year’s circumstances, and may appeal to you in a variety of situations. For 2021, my word was “brave”. I felt it. I failed at it. I focused on it.

This year, * drumroll please * my word is magic. When my eldest son was younger, he loved magic tricks… he learned a few and put on performances where he would “wow” us with his slight of hand. We saw magicians in Vegas and on tv specials and ooohed and ahhhed at the magic and wondered “How’d they do it?” But when I picked this word for 2022… this is not the definition of magic I had in mind. This magic is trickery and illusion. There’s enough of that out there in the world. I certainly don’t need to focus on that kind of magic.

Photo by Almos Bechtold on Unsplash

No, when I chose the word, maybe I was thinking about miracles. Maybe I was thinking about the unexpected. Maybe I was thinking about the astonishing. Perhaps I wanted to focus on the little things in life that are magic… things that used to make me oooh and ahh, but have been pushed aside by my practical side. Things that brought a little joy into people’s lives for no reason other than it was fun… like sparkles and sprinkles. Covid has robbed us of some of that. We have become consumed with sanitizer and sterility. I need some fairy dust in my year. I need some ribbons and confetti and spur-of-the-moment decisions — because I really don’t like those things. I fret at the cost and the environmental impact and the lack of frugality to those things. The people around me do like those things, though, and maybe we both need a little magic to brighten our days up this year.

I’m not so good at making magic. I miss the little ones at school who forced you to see the magic. The wide-eyed attention they gave when they just knew that something cool was about to happen. I want to be the wide-eyed one this year. I want to create those experiences for those around me… through my actions, through my faith in a great big God who still does miracles, and through my attention to the small details that allow me to see the everyday miracles. I want to delight in the smells and sounds and sights of a great big world around me and be astonished at it. I want to say, hey God, “How’d ya do that?” Magic.

I also think about magic in the sense of “ta-da” moments. When the hankies disappear into the hat. When the puff of smoke turns the bird into the beautiful lady. I’m learning how to make things new again — by fixing, painting, fluffing and upcycling. I am learning to love the ta-da moments of my projects when I can say Ha! Look at how that just turned out! Magic. Things transformed from one thing, into another… that’s a magic God loves to see, too. And I hope it will be part of my journey this year, too. I long to share it with you, my friends on this little piece of the internet where we dream big and fail hard. Where we think deeper and muse mightily.

So, my friends, “cheers” to another new year! May our year be filled magic, wonder and a little bit of mystery… and a good dose of musing about it all!

Walking on Eggshells

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If you’ve been a follower of mittonmusings.com for any length of time, you’ll know that I would love to have a set of backyard chickens. Crazy, I know. Living in the city doesn’t allow me the luxury of the coop, but my Instagram feeds follow a variety of homesteaders who have hens, so I live vicariously through them. Recently, they have all been posting great pictures of eggs…stylish rainbow shades nestled in cardboard cartons and vintage bowls or balanced on thick wooden farm tables. It’s the middle of January and their hens are still pumping out breakfast blessings in all kinds of shapes and colours (Yes, different hen varieties produce different coloured eggshells…another reason to want a flock…humbug to store bought, plain old white eggs…but I digress). So, eggs.

rainbow shells! (from Easter egger chickens)

One must admit that eggs are a pretty cool part of God’s creation… the shell of a chicken egg contains more than 17 000 tiny pores that allow air and moisture to travel in and out of the workings of the inner egg. The shell is made up of almost entirely calcium carbonate, with two thin membranes underneath that contract and cool when laid, making the egg fairly solid and bacteria and dust resistant… and yet we think of eggs as entirely fragile. (reference: https://www.exploratorium.edu) Apparently the colour of a hen’s ears will determine egg colour… and has something to do with developmental proteins…. wait… chicken ears??? Okay, let’s just stop there.

So, eggs. More specifically, eggshells. While scrolling feeds and enjoying posts of coloured eggs, my mind began to wander to Easter and eggs and those fabulous carved eggs and the Ukrainian burnt (Pysanka) eggs… all so pretty! I read an article about the famous Faberge eggs bejeweled and bedazzled for Russian royalty in the mid 1800’s. Designed as miniature works of art, most contained a “surprise” inside — a tiny picture or little automation. Ancient “kinder-surprises” minus the chocolate! Artisans often marvel at the perfect shape of an egg… and consequently it’s been used as a base for all kinds of art.

(photo via CNN) Faberge “peacock” egg

Notwithstanding all the facts we’ve discussed above, we must all agree in one simple fact about eggs: they are fragile. Even hardboiled eggshells can easily be pealed and crushed. I am sure there are many an artist who were heartbroken when eggshells snap at the slightest over pressing of their tools. Perhaps this is why they choose this delicate medium…the fragility adds to the beauty.

And so, my friends, it is with us. Our fragility makes us beautiful. Oh, we think we are strong. Bold and courageous, we harden our hearts and press on through life thinking we can do it our own way. Perhaps we even flaunt our rainbow colours and stand out against the whitewash of the crowd. We are like the Faberge eggs: bedazzled works of art on the outside, but contain small surprises on the inside. Surprises that catch us off guard when a crisis comes: surprises like guilt, fear, and doubt. Our inner insecurities leak out when we are cut deep…like the yolk that oozes from a soft boiled egg. We are weak, fragile and easily broken.

Yet, it is in our brokenness that we learn to trust in the One who makes us strong again. Some of you may remember that I’ve chosen a word for the year: BRAVE. (Read about it here) Part of the growth I want to develop in myself this year through “brave” is described in 2 Corinthians 4. As a follower of Christ, I have a great treasure to share, but I am a weak vessel, a jar of clay, a fragile egg, if you will. I easily succumb to fear, doubt, shyness and insecurity. Especially when it comes to sharing God’s “good news”. The Bible reminds me that it is not me who does the work…but me in Christ who becomes the Brave one.

Sometimes that strengthening needs to be through brokenness. We need to be softened, molded and corrected. Sometimes we may just need to be bold and take chances. Circumstances can make us brave… through Him. Are you still walking on eggshells? Or are you ready to be brave with me? Until we meet again, friends!