My One Word for 2021

Instead of making New Year resolutions, some people choose One Word for the year.  Sometimes the word seems to pick you.  Such was the case with my word for 2021.

I love it when my word for the next year comes to me early - usually in the late fall sometime. That's what happened this year.  Around the end of October or the beginning of November, my One Word for 2021 first became known to me.  

The word that presented itself was "Challenge"

My initial reaction?  "Oh - NO, thank you." After the year that 2020 turned out to be, the last thing I wanted was more challenges in my life!  I mean, c'mon! Give a gal a break already! Amiright?  How about "calm"?  Or "peace"?

The word kept coming up.  Everywhere I turned there seemed to be a new sign pointing me in that direction. I wasn't going to be easily convinced though.  I thought about it.  A lot.  I prayed about it.  A LOT.  I kept asking God over and over to give me another word for 2020.  An easier word. Any. Other. Word.  

But as week after week passed and we moved closer to the end of the year, Challenge persisted in its campaign to become the One Word for 2021.  It weighed on my mind.  It began to create a hazy image of what a year of Challenge might look like. Surprisingly, it wasn't necessarily bad.

So...  I surrendered to the word.  And that's how "Challenge" became my One Word for 2021.  

2021 will be a year for me to challenge myself.  A challenge to let go of all the baggage from 2020 and move forward to whatever the future holds for me. To try new things.  To stretch outside the cozy little comfort zone that all the uncertainty of the past year inspired me to create for myself.  It will be a year for challenging myself to create new routines and habits and let go of ones that I have outgrown. To try new things.  To have new experiences.  A year for growth and renewal.

Do you set resolutions or select a word or phrase to guide you through the year?  Tell me about it in the comments!