A Word

Tomorrow's First Day!

The first First Day of a brand new year!  Show me your "I stayed up too late" game faces!

<a href="http://www.journeytojosie.com"><img src="http://i496.photobucket.com/albums/rr321/thehanchan/firstday.jpg"></a>

For the past three years, I've spent some time really thinking about what I wanted the next year to be like.

I've set goals and made plans and reflected on how I could make it happen.

And then I've come up with a word.  A mantra, if you will.  Something to repeat on the hard days and shout out on the good days.  A battle cry to rally me when I'm ready to head for the hills.  When I reread my posts on my past words I was super excited to see that, while I haven't perfected any of them, I've grown in each area by leaps and bounds.

Hitting publish makes me feel more accountable for my follow through.

My 2013 word came to me a few weeks ago.

And I'm slightly cheating since it's actually two words.

Get Down.

Oh I need this phrase in my daily life.

I want to get down on the kid's level.

I need to Get Down on the floor and build a tower out of blocks as tall as Josie and then let Gabe plow it over.  I need to Get Down and color and paint and make a mess with these kids that refuse to stop growing up.

I want to quit over planning my days and participate in them instead.

I feel like most days I set the kids up with something to do and rush to start the next thing while they sit alone to do it.  This year, I want in on the fun.  I want to draw with chalk and swing at the park.  I want to swim and collect rocks and watch Disney movies without going over lists of everything else I should be doing.

I want to force myself to stay in the moment.

I need to Get Down and get my hands dirty.

I need to be involved in helping other people.  We used to feed the homeless and spend long hours with teens that needed someone to listen to their super serious drama.  We used to get right down in the muck and mud and help families get through their darkest days.

The past couple of years we've gotten away from that and I want it back.

I want God to use me.  Even if it's messy and inconvenient.  I want to Get Down off my soap boxes and start actually dismantling the things that irk me so bad.

And then I want to take a cue from Gabe and just plain Get Down.

The kid has rhythm in his bones and this life is just too uncertain to pass up a good dance party.

So how about you?

What does 2013 look like for you?  Do you have goals, resolutions?  What will your 2013 Battle Cry sound like?

Let's bring it.  Let's make this year the one that outshines all the ones before.

Happy New Year Friends.

Past Years Mantras:
Prioritize - 2010
Illuminate - 2011
Attend - 2012