 Once upon a time...in a world far, far away... from reality...I dreamed a dream of finding... BALANCE! A peaceful, calm, and yet busy world, where I managed a household, worked a full-time teaching job, hit the gym to work out four times each week, designed and sold jewelry in my successful Etsy shop, and visited my distant grandchildren several times each year. And then...I woke up... to dusty furniture, dirty dishes, an extra fifteen pounds; to ungraded lessons, and only five Etsy sales ... BUT WAIT! I did spend Easter break week, ten days in both June and July, Labor Day weekend, Thanksgiving week, and the entire week after Christmas with those precious grandchildren! Are you with me so far? Been walking a few miles in my Sketchers? Been feeling some of that same frustration yourself? Late on the evening of that most promising night of the year...the night when all the failures of the previous twelve months are laid to rest...the night full of the promise of new beginnings...I found myself scrolling mindlessly through my Facebook feed and I stumbled upon a post that made me stop...drop...and take notice... #oneword365 What a concept! Choose a word to be a focus for the coming twelve months...live it...blog about with like-minded "one worders" to hold oneself accountable. But then I remembered that single word hanging on my craft room wall...the one from last year... BALANCE Yup! Been there, done that! Just not with #oneword365, but with Darla Kirchner of Creative Biz School. And I had failed miserably. By mid-March of 2015, I had pretty much given up on finding BALANCE and was just trying to make it to the end of the school year and the blessed relief of summer break. When August rolled around, I tried to revive the effort, but by mid-September, I was once again mired in the struggle to find that elusive work-life BALANCE. However, I am a creative soul with a hopeful spirit, and I am going to try, try again. Not with another Facebook group, not with another blog link-up, and not with the same word (although I did consider just that for the first few days of January). No, this time I am going to take my inspiration from Joshua Becker, author of Simplify and blogger at www.becomingminimalist.com. My Word for 2016 is going to be SIMPLIFY If there is a way to make my life a little easier by doing less, I am going to let unnecessary tasks wait until later...or not do them at all. If there is a way to make my life a little easier by having a little less, I am going to get rid of the unnecessary clutter. I know it won't be easy to clean out those closets and under-the-bed storage bins. I know it won't be easy to say "no" to a social invitation when my calendar is already full or when I just need time to recharge with a good book and a cup of tea. I know it won't be easy to simplify my cooking and create clean, nutritious meals so that I feel energetic and ready to take on my world, but I am determined to try. And maybe, just maybe, by learning to SIMPLIFY, I will rediscover that long-lost BALANCE! If what you've just read resonates with your creative soul, leave a comment and share your Word for 2016...or your thoughts on balance and simplicity...or just say "hello" to a kindred spirit. I'd love to hear from you!  Comments are closed.
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