☝🏽One Word 2024

"Sometimes we need to write our way back to ourselves." ~Lucy Calkins, Midwest Coaching Institute, 2023.

This morning I woke up to only three unsolicited emails in my various Gmail accounts. This is because for the last week, I've been clicking the fine print hidden at the bottom that says, unsubscribe. My inbox is cluttered, my backpack is cluttered, and my mind is cluttered. It's high time I begin to sift, sort, and FILTER out the things that no longer deserve my time, attention, and headspace. 

As the waning days of December slipped by, I began testing out a few words for 2024. I told a trusted friend I was leaning towards CARE LESS. She reassured me I could give myself permission to choose two words, but something about caring less left me unsettled. The word I was waiting on literally washed over me as I showered. Water has a way of filtering out the jumbled thoughts that litter my mind. Clarity often strikes in the early morning hours after my brain has a chance to rest and defrag overnight. 

The word filter teems with possibility. It's a noun and a verb. It can even be an adjective if you add -ation to the end and alter the spelling just a bit. From a scientific lens, it has the power to modify light, electricity, and sound. The part of the definition that piqued my interest the most was, "Modifying the appearance of something." You see, perception is reality. And often, my initial perceptions of situations are dead wrong. I get worked up over things outside of my control and I overfunction. In 2024 I want to apply mental and emotional filters that help me decide what needs to be removed and what needs to stay.

My husband says I have a super-sniffer. My heightened sense of smell led me to discover that the average American is expected to change out the cabin air filter in their car every 20,000 miles. Masking the funky odor in my car with air fresheners hasn't seemed to work, so later today I will follow the steps in a YouTube video, and replace the dingy, particle-infested filter. Metaphorically speaking, breathing fresh, purified air represents a significant change I hope to create in 2024. 

As a young girl, I was the quintessential teacher's pet. I smiled a lot, kept my mouth shut, and did what I was told. Pleasing others often meant denying my own wants and needs, which in the end only created resentment and heartache. Thanks to years of therapy, I eventually discovered my voice as both an advocate and a disruptor. Professionally, I'm the colleague who always asks WHY? When problems arise, I tackle them head on, executing like a champ. I sometimes struggle to stay in my lane and puzzling through complex issues energizes me. However, as I enter my mid-forties, I'm starting to wonder if it's all worth it. Perhaps it's time I pause long enough to apply an ROI filter, "Is this issue worth my mental and emotional energy?"

Upon opening this blog, I noticed I only wrote a single entry during 2023. I blame graduate school, but the truth is more complex. Writing can be a filter of sorts. It helps me slow down and think through things in a more methodical, nuanced way. It nudges me to weed out unhelpful thought distortions and clarifies reality. I want to write my way back to myself this year, rediscovering my purpose. May the word FILTER serve me well in 2024.