Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Happy New Year ~ happy new word!






Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. Anais Nin 


be·come
biˈkəm/
verb
verb: become; 3rd person present: becomes; past tense: became; gerund or present participle: becoming; past participle: become
  1. 1.
    begin to be.
    "they became angry"
    • grow to be; turn into.
      "the child will become an adult"
      synonyms:growgetturn, come to be, get to be; 
    • (of a person) qualify or be accepted as; acquire the status of.
      "she wanted to become a doctor"
      synonyms:turn into, change into, be transformed into, be converted into 


“It is not what we get. But who we become, what we contribute… that gives meaning to our lives.”  Tony Robbins

The first word that kept popping into my head earlier this year was allow.  But the longer I sat with it, the more passive it felt.  I decided to keep looking at words.  

I thought of all the things I want to come into my life.  Health. Healing. Energy. But I also felt how much all of those things revolve around having cancer.  

So I kept searching…

I recently found some journaling from a time in my mid-twenties.  I had so many questions, and so few answers.  What would my life look like when I was 30 or 40?

I simply wanted to be married.  Have kids.  Have a house.  Work in a  profession that I loved.

But not knowing the who, what, when or where of those things precluded me from seeing my life after 40.  
 
Now that I am right where I longed to be in my mid 40's what is next?  Who do I want to be?  

It was when I had that thought- that the word I couldn't let go of, held me fast. 

BECOME

"Become."  I want to engage in every possibility of becoming who I am meant to be. Part of the impetus towards this selection, I think, is that I truly want to know who I am supposed to be outside of the woman with stage 4 breast cancer. I'm trying to shift myself away from always seeing my life as centered on being the cancer patient.  So many possibilities exist in becoming- healthy.  Or joyful.  Or fun-loving.  Or an author.  Or anything really.  So the first sentence in the definition says "To begin to be."  And I think - okay- here I go!  



My friend Mimi shared this with me and I thought it was perfect to pass along. 





I have a big Friday coming up.  Sedation, then mri, then hopefully the ct scanner.  Big appointment with Dr. P coming up next week… 

Happy New Year! 

How about you?  Do you have a word you'd care to share with us?  

I'd love to hear!! 

52 comments:

  1. Declutter -- in all areas of my life!

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    1. I will love hearing about how you tackle this! I think its a great word that could truly change your life!

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    2. my husband went on a tear this afternoon, decluttering and organizing and pitching all kinds of stuff from the area in the basement where we store the Christmas decorations! it's all about being ruthless, and you have to be in the mood to do it. our curb is full of stuff for the guys to take away tomorrow, and i have some stuff to take to the local thrift store.

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    3. Jenn- can you come visit me in Minnesota?? Hehe- you'd be slightly horrified at our office clutter I am afraid :)

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  2. Every time I visit here I am reminded of what an adult, a woman, a human is meant to 'be-come'. You are already a model of 'becoming' (in every sense of the word!), but the wonderful thing about that word is that it implies that it is an on-going process no matter what we have already become. There is always room for more conscious, radiant beingness. Bravo on selecting such an inspiring word, Vicky.

    Thank you for your good wishes for 2014 ... to you and yours as well. xox

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    1. I am excited to think I may be reading you again! It is such a process- truly- we are never meant to quit learning or re-learning I think. I wonder what you would choose as a word Bonnie?

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  3. May you become everything that I already know you are! Love you dearly my best friend forever -- that is "simple!"

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    1. Loved spending time with you last night! We have grown up so much… ha… we were warm, comfortable, wearing our comfy clothes, and we could "hear" each other talk- we should have thought of this years ago!! Can't wait to hear how you rock the word "simple!"

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  4. I love your word! And I would love to see you become an author :)
    My new word is honor.
    Happy New Year Vicky~

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    1. Kristin, you've inspired me to try! I may not go about it in all the same ways, but I believe I should at least try :) Love watching the way God is working through you Kristin- honor seems so perfectly fitting for you!

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  5. i love it!!! and soon, my post will go up with my word :)
    happy new year vicky…maybe it "become" the best year of your life !!!
    xo

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    1. Beth- I love how you creatively put your stamp on everything and I can't wait to hear/read your word!!

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  6. Lovely, lovely picture of you at the beginning of this post. I love your new word. I've never done OLW. I always feel like (1) I'm not thoughtful enough to come up with one word that can encompass the year and (2) I'm setting myself up for failure. ;) I know many people who do and it seems to work out so well for them.

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    1. Hubby took that pic for me- had my hair stylist covering my bald spots and making my hair look full and healthy- ha! I think I've found that choosing the word really focuses me and then I tend to see the word everywhere. Its almost like choosing God, and then when you really pay attention and you notice him everywhere as well. I so know you could do this!! But I also love you exactly the way you are :)

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  7. dearest Vicki, I wish you good news after those events. may your new year BECOME a year that is cancer-free.

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    1. oops sorry I misspellec your name, Vicky!

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    2. Thank you Norma- I hadn't thought of it that way- but I love it! Happy New Year to you and blessings to you that last the whole way through!

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  8. Vicky, I've got my word rolling, too. I always enjoy this post. It's become (there's that word) my favorite of the year. And I do love your choice and think it's very appropriate. I also love how thoughtful you are about this. Last year, I had several words that were churning too. It's an interesting, personal, mysterious process of how that one word emerges, and just as interesting, personal and mysterious to see how it manifests. Excited for our 2014! Still praying, just as much or more than ever!

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    1. I'm coming to see yours- I know you are just as reflective and engaged in the process of finding the word so I look forward to it! Excited to catch up with you soon and discuss all of this and more :) Blessings in the New Year!

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  9. Still contemplating my word - waiting for further guidance by the Spirit... yours is exceptional and I pray that you will understand more and more as time goes by how this word will fit with the journey, the days ahead - and the good things the Lord has in store for you. Bless you!!

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    1. Thank you Susan- perfectly fine to contemplate as long as you need. One will find you, of that I am sure! Thank you for your wishes for me and my word and how it will fit the journey- I love that! Blessings and love to you Susan!

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    2. Hi Vicky, just a little update this a.m., the 3rd of January ... the word that keeps coming back to me is JOY. At first I thought it was too easy, you know? But I realize after much thought, that it really isn't. So in the words of our beloved Sara, I am choosing JOY. :-)

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  10. Calmness - thats my word for 2014!!! The word of the year ... your idea and now I need it every year. It is my Rock in stormy moments. Wonderfull that the words I found on Pinterest so perfect for you and you word 😊!

    Love you so much and send you 365 Bussals 😉!

    Love
    Mimi

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    1. Mimi- I think that is a word that will have many benefits! How wonderful and I wish you a peaceful, and tranquil year filled with much calmness!! Love you honey- so much!

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  11. Hi Vicky - I'm choosing "non-resistance". The rational behind the choice is on my blog www.pixeldustphotoart.com.

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    1. Bonnie- I once chose "anti-complacency" because I couldn't find an antonym for it :) So I get exactly what you mean and I think its brilliant. I am heading over to see your explanation :)

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  12. My only word is love.
    If people could live in the entity of " love "so many pressures and illnesses in life could be avoided.
    If only businesses and governments understood the true meaning of this word, the world would be so much nicer to live in.
    And so this is what I wish for the world and to you my dear Vicky.
    The true source and majesty of love to regain your health and strength for the New Year.

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    1. Perfect- I don't think you can go wrong with that one at all! Thankful for all the "loving well wishes" you send my way!! Happy and healthy New Year to you Vic!

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  13. You will "become" more than you ever dreamed... and then some.

    Positive thoughts and prayers for Friday! Happy New Year, Vicky!

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    1. Thank you Ms. A- you are constantly in my thought and prayers as we start off this New Year of HOPE! Hugs and prayers for stamina and a healthy heart for you and Michael!

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  14. Happy New Year, dear friend.
    Oh, Vicky, what a perfect backdrop for your stunning picture and word. Floating doors, ready to open to each possibility in 2014. Become... so perfect for you!
    Doors are opening. All.is.possible. You are becoming who God means you to be.

    Years ago, as my husband received the news that he had cancer, he started to say aloud, "I have cancer, but cancer doesn't have me." He reminded himself daily that
    he was not going to be defined just by this chapter of his journey, although it was and is a huge part of his life-lessons, but that he wanted to expand with this reminder
    that life is precious. He opened up new windows and doors. He risked and explored.
    He threw out fear and replaced it with positive expectation. It seems like you might be at that same place as well.

    And in response to your question...
    My word for 2014 is Wholehearted. Being all in. Living life with no regrets and no I wish I hadda and I wish I couldda. Living all the possibilities with my heart.wide.open. I felt like after time on a beach, hearing Gods' whisper in my heart-of-hearts, and reading a book by Brene'Brown...that Wholehearted, and Wholehearted Living is a perfect word for me in 2014.

    And you, dear friend, are in my prayers each and every day. With every sunset in Maui, I could hear myself say, "Vicky would LOVE those colors." Praying in earnest as you talk to your doctors and take your tests.

    THANK YOU for the gift you are in my life! I am more alive since knowing you and reading about who you are. Keep writing and loving life.

    Love you to the moon and back!
    Linda

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    1. If you'd like to read more about my word, and my thoughts about it, please visit me at
      LindaSeppaSalisbury.blogspot.com

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    2. Love hearing about your word- truly a gem filled with possibility! I am also so awed that you were in the one place I have dreamt of going to for so long now!! I've been so many places- truly traveled a ton- but just not to Hawaii :) Thankful and honored to call YOU friend, dear one! I'm off to read your post!! Love you to the moon and all the way back, friend!

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  15. omg....I just read your post....and realized that you and I both posted the exact same quote for our New Year's first blog post.
    So many things about us are different, yet we have travelled some of the same roads, I think. I send you hope and strength and love this year, Vicky. Wherever our paths lead us, I know we will both BECOME who we were meant to be all along.

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    1. I just commented on your blog- and think yes- while the journey is called something different for both of us, some spots along the way are indeed the same!

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  16. Become is a powerful word Vicky and I know it will bring you everything you wish for as usually the word of the year serve as a guide from our soul. Blessings to you and your family on this new year beginning.

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    1. I think you are so right Anyes- that word hits us in a way that we know its only partially an intellectual choice and more fully a "soul" choice. Perfectly said friend!

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  17. I always look forward to your writing(s) Vicky.
    Your word is perfect for you...and I'm sure that you will not only do it justice but that you will absolutely surpass the very meaning of the word.
    "To begin to be..." That is the tip of the iceberg for you, in my opinion. You are not only "beginning to be"....but you are the essence of what "being" is all about.
    I hug you....
    I love you, my friend.
    J.

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    1. That last sentence friend- is pure gift to me- " you are the essence of what "being" is all about," wow- that honors me so, friend. Thank you and I hug you right back! Love you too friend!

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  18. Another beautiful, inspirational post, Vicky. I'll keep you in my prayers this week.

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    1. Thankful for your sweet prayers and kind words always Katie :)

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  19. I was so curiouse what your word would be...and my mind couldn't even try to get there...but let me tell you "Become" is perfect..from the Title of your post..i grinned and thought..."there she goes, choosing a word I never allowed in yet" Become...maybe I need to borrow that for my word...thank you for utterly wonderful, amazing, beautiful you! In prayers and love always!

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    1. You, friend, if it resonates with you, can absolutely use the same word and claim it as your own! I've had it happen to me too- where someone else's word resonates so deeply with me. Will be excited to see what you decide! Thankful for your support, encouragement and love!

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  20. it's PERFECT! i think it's an excellent choice for where you are in your journey, and for you to be able to say that you'd like to think about yourself in other terms than "cancer patient" is PERFECTLY UNDERSTANDABLE!! i actually think you have been doing this well for awhile already, but you know yourself best.

    i went to alece's site--http://oneword365.com/--and contemplated some of her words, and really only one word seems to make sense for this coming year: WRITE. God has been impressing on my heart for the last few months of this year that He has put a pen in my hand like He put the staff in Moses' hand, so I need to do what He wants me to with it.

    you've glimpsed the beginnings, but there's much more work to do. i'm committing myself to that process.

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    1. Ahhh- that seems utterly perfect given what I've seen from you! Yes! Look forward to seeing and hearing about much more from you!!

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  21. Like everyone else...I have been looking forward to hearing what your one little word would be for 2014. Of course, you have picked the perfect word for you, and I love all that it signifies for you and your life. I have seen you growing and changing and BECOMING throughout the time I have known you and have been reading your blog. Your word certainly relates to the journey that you are on, and you continue to touch and inspire us all. In fact, I am thinking of a little word of my own! And, I am wondering how 5th graders would do with coming up with a word to inspire them for the coming year. What do you think?

    Love, hugs and prayers to you, dear Vicky!

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    1. Steph- ohhh how I love hearing that someone has possibly decided to try one little word. We'll see :) I would love to see what 5th graders would do with this idea! Why not at least try? Ali Edwards posts a list of words each year that others choose- and I often can leap from theirs and discover my own. I noticed "embrace" was on the list quite a bit! I wonder if a "5th grade list" could be made or found that help spark the idea. Or if you could all brainstorm words to use? I think there is a lot of merit to this Steph!!

      Look forward to hearing more about it!!

      Love and hugs and prayers right back to you sweet friend!

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  22. Happy New Year!
    ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

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  23. Happy New Year to you and yours AnaCristina!

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  24. Dearest Vicky,
    It's Friday and I know that this is such a big day for you with medical tests and conversations. Just wanted you to know that I am praying non-stop, as are so many others. I am praying for you that you will experience God;s never-ending peace, joy, gratitude and reassuring news today.All will be well, my friend. All will be well.

    Loves and hugs from Spokane!
    Linda

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  25. I "met" you through Molly Guthrey's article. I love he one word challenge and have chosen "stretch" for my word. I love the multiple meanings. Was just in a challenging workshop made better by the reminder that I could "stretch" myself and do more. Sending positive love and energy to you for your journey to become.

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I welcome what you have to say. Thanks for taking the time to grace me with your thoughts and words!

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