Curiosity is a great word for 2025. It means not to take anything at face value and research until you've had enough of it. Maybe it has some cynicism mixed in, but I don't know how you can reach 78 years old and not have cynicism in your Life Behavior Bag. Also, it takes a good level of intelligence to be curious, too.
At our Art of Onward gathering on Monday I shared this bit from Richard Rohr.
"There are commonly two kinds of human beings. There are people who want certitude and there are people who want understanding."
Rohr argues that certitude is a feature of what he calls "infantile religion," which eschews mystery and insists on pat answers. By contrast, "people who live [seeking understanding] never stop growing, are not easily defeated, and frankly, are fun to live with."
My word for the year is acceptance. I'm trying to accept my circumstances without guilt or resentment. It means everything from not overspending, to emotional resignation. I'm still working on it.
My word for the year is gladness. Rather than choosing one myself as I usually do, it came to me as an Epiphany Sunday star word drawn for me by a colleague. I’m considering how to hold it in many ways, including with Buechner’s definition of call in mind—the place where my deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. Thanks for the analysis/prediction distinction. I needed that.
Courage is my word also! Throughout January I have used it more as courageous: courageous introspection, courageous boundaries, courageous love and, now, courageous curiosity !
By the way… thank you for your explanation of predictions and analysis…though I didn’t use them on the nineteenth when I cut down my newsfeed, it is what I did!
To use a phrase, it just came to me... I don't feel like I made it up because it arrived fully formed, but yeah, I appreciate having language for the distinction.
The morning of the inauguration, a journalist wrote an article "here's all the executive orders we might see today"... and I was like, can't we just wait a few hours??
I got courage. Since I just retired from the ministry, I was hoping for a word like peace or like a friend got, contentment--courage seemed a little unsettling but perhaps a necessary component for these times. We will see what God sends!
Love BOTH your words, MaryAnn. And you are a gift!!
Backatcha 🎁
Curiosity is a great word for 2025. It means not to take anything at face value and research until you've had enough of it. Maybe it has some cynicism mixed in, but I don't know how you can reach 78 years old and not have cynicism in your Life Behavior Bag. Also, it takes a good level of intelligence to be curious, too.
Yes!
At our Art of Onward gathering on Monday I shared this bit from Richard Rohr.
"There are commonly two kinds of human beings. There are people who want certitude and there are people who want understanding."
Rohr argues that certitude is a feature of what he calls "infantile religion," which eschews mystery and insists on pat answers. By contrast, "people who live [seeking understanding] never stop growing, are not easily defeated, and frankly, are fun to live with."
My word for the year is acceptance. I'm trying to accept my circumstances without guilt or resentment. It means everything from not overspending, to emotional resignation. I'm still working on it.
You are doing hard good word, Abbie. 💛
My word for the year is gladness. Rather than choosing one myself as I usually do, it came to me as an Epiphany Sunday star word drawn for me by a colleague. I’m considering how to hold it in many ways, including with Buechner’s definition of call in mind—the place where my deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. Thanks for the analysis/prediction distinction. I needed that.
I love the word gladness. It sounds wonderful in addition to the meaning.
Courage is my word also! Throughout January I have used it more as courageous: courageous introspection, courageous boundaries, courageous love and, now, courageous curiosity !
By the way… thank you for your explanation of predictions and analysis…though I didn’t use them on the nineteenth when I cut down my newsfeed, it is what I did!
To use a phrase, it just came to me... I don't feel like I made it up because it arrived fully formed, but yeah, I appreciate having language for the distinction.
The morning of the inauguration, a journalist wrote an article "here's all the executive orders we might see today"... and I was like, can't we just wait a few hours??
I got courage. Since I just retired from the ministry, I was hoping for a word like peace or like a friend got, contentment--courage seemed a little unsettling but perhaps a necessary component for these times. We will see what God sends!
I think it takes courage to lean into peace in a world that wants us to be fearful and angry at each other!
And congrats on your retirement!
I like that. The courage to lean into peace! Thank you!