My Word for 2014

If you read blogs regularly, you've probably noticed the trend of, rather than composing New Year's resolutions, to choose a "word" for the year.  Myself, I love writing resolutions.  It's a list - what's not to love?! The problem is, year after year, my list looks like this:

1. Eat healthier
2. Work out more
3. Floss more often
4. Keep better in touch with old friends
5. Join a small group at church
6. Eat out less often
7. Go vegetarian five days a week
8. Wear real outfits when I leave the house instead of yoga pants
9. etc.
10. etc.

By the time I'm done, I typically have - no exaggeration - about 30 resolutions every year.  Let's take a guess how many of them I adhere to for more than a week.

So this year, I've decided to do a bloggy thing and pick a word for the year.  For me, 2014 will be the year of:

living purposefully.

Okay, it's a two-word phrase, not just one word, but whatever.  I love it, because it really encompasses what I truly want to accomplish most.  When I quit my teaching job (ugh, maybe I'll write about that one day), I returned to the restaurant.  While not exciting in and of itself, I was excited that it would give me more free time to figure out what I actually enjoy.  I'm 27 years old, but I don't have any hobbies, really.  Not many interests, either.  So I want to be more purposeful with my free time, using it to enjoy my life.

I want to be more purposeful with my time with Patrick.  Sitting together in bed watching TV as we fall asleep does not count as spending time together.

I want to be more purposeful with my time with my dogs.  Just because I'm tired when I get home from work does not mean that they are.  They have slept all day and want to play!

I want to be more purposeful with my time with the Lord.  Namely, I want to make time with the Lord.

I want to be more purposeful with things that I say.  I don't think enough before I speak, so I want to say what I mean.

I want to be more purposeful with my relationships with friends.  We've only been in Wilmington for 6 months, and I'm not as social as I wish I were.  I miss female companionship.

Really, I could go on and on...kind of a repeat problem of resolutions, no?  But really, it's not the same, because I just want to be purposeful with everything that I do, as much as I can.  Of course not all the time with everything, but I just know that life is short, and I want to actually enjoy mine and have mine mean something.

Do you ever focus on living purposefully?  What do you think of the blogging trend for a "word of the year" instead of resolutions?