In my Friday night writing group our prompt was to pick a word for the year as a guide and companion. The prompt was based on a blog Nevada City poet Molly Fisk wrote about finding a word as an alternative to a list of resolutions. It turned out to be the perfect catalyst for finding my own word for 2013.
My word was AND. It arrived with a pop after mulling over words like ALLOW and FLOW (as in go with the flow). I even considered some hyphenated words, like sovereign-self. I read that in a book and loved the idea of being a sovereign-self the way Native Americans have sovereign laws and lands.
I thought of choosing two words. WHAT and IF are two of my favorite word combos. WHAT IF is almost as good as AND.
I thought of my favorite phrases, but the process was getting away from me so I went back to the one word. The one true word to carry with me for an entire year.
My ego wanted a word that was unique and cool, so I tried to shake off AND. But no, the lowly and overused and much abused AND was my word. The AND of run-on sentences.
And yet, simply saying it out loud lifted my spirits. I realized that AND has a higher calling, maybe even the highest calling of all words. It’s definitely loftier than OR and more decisive than BUT.
It’s inclusive. It means I can work on two novels simultaneously. I don’t have to choose. I could even work on three at once if I wanted to, and write short stories and prose poems and….
AND works across all areas of life. It brings relief to any obstacle or setback. I can feel sad AND know I’m still okay. It’s liberating to add any amount of them to wish lists and goals. It’s a word that means infinity, endless acceptance, endless adventure, experiences and possibilities.
Do you have a guiding word for 2013?
Linda Townsdin 
Love your word: and. Reminds me of a wisdom saying I heard about ten years ago: Don’t have the actual quote anymore (have emailed away for help on that) but the notion is something like: we think we know the meaning of two and two, but we overlook the meaning of “and.”
My word (one I’ve used in the past) is “courage.”
Courage is a powerful word. It’s like carrying around your own shield. Love it.
Yes! Thanks for posting your Friday night write, Linda. “And” is a perfect word for 2013! Mine, it turns out, is “lucky.”
Lucky’s a magic word. I loved your blog on the subject.
… I like your “And” word. Thinking about what could be my word, I think of “Opportunity”. ¡Have a 2013 full of opportunities!!!.
Thank you! I wish the same for you and with that as your guiding word, you’ll be an opportunity magnet!
Love your blog as always — LOVE your choice of word and all the sense-making in what you wrote. I’m torn between “friend” and “compassion.” I’m thinking maybe they’re the same thing.
Thank you! Friend/compassion are words that make my heart open.
AND happy new year Linda! Great post… and what a wonderful and unusual word to chose.
I’m so glad you liked it. Thanks!
Great word, Linda. For me, the word is accept, which becomes all the more potent when combined with yours…accept yourself and others, the past and present, the pain and the joy. Thanks for your thoughtful post. Dave
Hi Dave, I love the combo. You are the best.
An interesting discussion is definitely worth
comment. There’s no doubt tht that you ought to publish more about this
issue, it may not be a taboo subject but generally people do
not discuss such topics. To the next! Cheers!!