A few weeks ago, I chose my ‘one word for the year.’
Lots of other people do that, I think.
Nothing special about the idea.

But there’s a lot that’s special about that one word.

It’s a word that I (or others like me, who choose such a word) decide on.
A word we’ll keep on the front burner of our lives.
A word whose meaning and definition we’ll contemplate,
And rehearse,
And re-visit for the entire year.

A few weeks ago, I chose my one word: Notice

I chose that word because, well, I noticed something.
I noticed that I wasn’t noticing some things I felt I should be noticing.
For example, I don’t think I notice how much I talk, and how little I listen.
I don’t think I take stock at the end of each day, and notice important intersections that have occurred.
People I met along the mile-markers of my everydayness.
Or, occasions I’ve had to make a difference in the life of someone else that slipped right on by me.

I’m sure there are opportunities aplenty in every single day.
I just don’t notice them.

I all too often don’t notice my mind wandering off into corners;
Places my feeble brain has no business visiting.
Entire rooms in my mind where critical thoughts, judgements about people I love, opinions about people I don’t even know can materialize, take root, grow.
What’s up with that, I wonder? And it happens more often than I’d like to admit.
And usually, I don’t even notice it until it’s already happened, and my ignorant brain has moved on to something else.

That’s the reason I decided to choose “Notice” as my word for this year.
I’m ignorant, in so many ways; ignorant in too many ways, really.
And the root of the word ‘ignorant’ is ‘ignore.’

My definition of ‘ignore’ is “to notice, without take note.” In other words, to be ignorant is to ignore what’s happening inside you, outside you, and all around you until it’s too late to notice.

So … if your reading this, you’re on notice:
Notice is my one word for this year.