One Word

This morning went much better than I had anticipated.  The boys and I always revert back to our night owl tendencies when given the opportunity so I was downright fearful of how we'd fair this morning when that alarm clock went off before the sun had even bothered to make an appearance.  But I actually woke up five minutes before the alarm even went off which almost never happens and the boys barely gave me any resistance at all.  If this is any indication of how this year is going to go, 2013 may just be the best year ever.  Quick, where's some wood?  Knock-knock.

This is my third new year since beginning blogging and every year I read several posts from different bloggers in which they choose a word to focus on for that year.  I always enjoy reading them and think it's a great idea but have never been able to pick just one word because have you seen the size of that dictionary?  I have a hard enough time picking something off that four page menu at the Mexican restaurant.   How will I ever choose just ONE word to focus on for an entire year? 

So I thought about it...and thought about it...and thought about it some more...

The thing that kept coming back to me...the thing I think I struggle with and need to work on the most, is the art of letting go.  I worry way too much.  I overthink.  I obsess over every tiny little thing and imagine all the bad things that could possibly happen to me or heaven forbid, someone else I love.  After experiencing the unthinkable, I allowed the fear and what ifs? to consume me although I keep hearing God's whisper to trust Him, to have faith in Him, to turn my worries over to Him every morning and every night and to just get on with living and being in the moment.

So my word is PEACE.  I'm going to try my hardest to slow down, relax, breathe slower and deeper, to pause and silence my thoughts more often, and to just.stop.worrying.  Or at least just worry less. 

I'm a quiet person by nature but as Charlie once pointed out to me,  one doesn't have to look long at my face to notice the fact that my wheels are always turning.  And I suppose that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing if I was thinking of something productive, like how to put an end to world hunger or fix our broken economy but more often than not, I'm just overthinking the small things or worrying about the possibility of bigger, badder things.

So yeah, I think I'm going with Peace. In other words, I'm going to try my best to lighten up and chill.the.heck.out. Because that's always a good thing, right?

Can you pick just one?