The Word for 2011

Looking back at my words for the past 3 years, this year's definitely diverges from the flock. My first year of the word was 2008 when I chose Balance, in 2009 I was all about Resilience, and last year I was Passion. I will spare you from evaluating last year's word or any of the other years here, but suffice it to say that each word proved to be important and prospicious in its own unique way, and my hope is that this years will be no different.

So a few evenings before the big year-change-over-event, my husband and I were sitting around the fire, talking about what we wanted to see and create in 2011:

• What things we wanted to stop dreaming about and make Real (yes with a capital R)
• What things had been on our life lists for a while but now no longer seemed relevant and needed to be removed
• What top things did we want to accomplish in 2011
• What things were feeling absolutely necessary to add/change/delete/remake etc.

And in the midst of our conversation my word came to me: Stride. I resisted it at first, it sounded kind of funny, dorky even. It felt so basic and elementary. Stride wears Keen shoes, and hats to keep the rain off its head. Stride carries sun screen, and a bottle of water and probably never wears mascara. But hey, that's me too. And then it came to me: simple. elementary. basic. = no drama. no pie in the sky. no, oh let's just say it, no bullshit.

I got this clear picture in my head of me walking, I was on a hill and I was walking with a full open stride. Legs fully extended, hips loose, ankles firm, knees happy, and I was moving, I was for lack of a better phrase, Hitting my Stride.

There's nothing I would like more for this year than to hit my stride with my art, with my business, with my painting, with the illustration styles I have been experimenting with, feeling out how my art as jewelery idea will go, and committing myself to using my words more, and writing, a lot. Full stride owning who I am. To take full and total ownership of who I am, what my art is, and not run with it but rather, stride into it.

Oh, and in the vision I had, I was smiling. Really big smiles, whilst striding along on a mountain trail, in the sun, birds are singing, and the grass is swaying in the breeze. Yeah, so here I am striding in to 2011.

Comments

[stef]

Oh I love this ...like really love this - it's going to be a good year my dear!!

xoxoxo

[Shelley Lane Kommers]

amen, lady.

[Lindsey]

yay, I love it too. Good luck!! :)

[EVA]

Great word!! Hope you hit your stride in 2011!!

[Carrie K]

The word stride really does invoke so much more than its definition. That's a fabulous word.

[Swirly]

I love it, and don't think it is at all dorky. I think it ROCKS.

[Celia]

This is my first year choosing a word....I chose....or actually IT chose me.....Believe.

[Quinn]

Hey Liz! I'm popping over from Gypsy Girl's Guide as I loved your doorway post. I'm so happy to find your 'words' here!! And STRIDE...love it! Like a horse galloping, like finding your rhythm, your groove, your juju. Hope your strides are sparkling so far this year!

~Quinn