WHY DID I CHOOSE TO LIVE LIGHTLY?
If you've been following along with my Word(s) of the Year for 2023 you'll
know I chose "Live Lightly" to guide me through the last several months. I'd actually decided on a
different #WOTY and then changed my mind at the last minute on my way home
from a mini-vacation.
I'd realized that I was weary from all that had been happening in the
previous few years, and I felt the need to be kinder to myself. Today I'm
looking back at that choice and how it's played out...
WHAT HAD CAUSED THE HEAVINESS?
When I looked back at the last few years, I could see how things had been
layering on top of each other to give me that sense of tiredness. Three
things immediately came to mind:
1. QUITTING MY TOXIC JOB
It was a huge decision for someone with my personality type
to walk away from a job
that had seemed like the perfect position. I had to come to the point of a
near nervous breakdown before I finally admitted that I needed to leave, and
once I walked away, there was a long road to recovering my 'mojo' and
figuring out whether to return to work or to retire early.
2. THE PANDEMIC
Six months into quitting my job, the pandemic descended upon us and brought
with it a whole lot of communal stress, anxiety, loss of control, and
uncertainty. Looking back, it was a very daunting time and one that was
unprecedented. It compounded all the unsettledness I was already feeling
from losing who I was and what I thought I'd be doing for the next
decade.
3. MY HIP FAILING
Just as covid started to fade into the background, my hip issues that had
been manageable for decades, suddenly flared into a
full blown hip failure
and I lost my pleasantly active, normal life. I ended up in constant pain,
unable to walk, climb stairs, get in and out of a car, sleep comfortably,
and the list went on. So, I ended up with
a total hip replacement
and the recovery that entails (and I'm so grateful for it now!)
LOSING THE MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL WEIGHT
This year I've focused on being kind to myself, acknowledging what has
been, and moving on from it.
I returned to work last year
and after a year or so, I realized that
I didn't want to work anymore
- I had needed to go back and make the choice about whether to work or not
work on my own terms. Leaving my job this time brought a sense of closure
and the knowledge that I was truly ready to be "retired".
I've settled into a much more
gentle way of life. My days are my own, they're flexible and allow me to be as social or as
insular as I choose. I can be busy or unbusy, I've discarded some
commitments and taken on new ones that feel like a better fit. I'm free to
do as much or as little as I like - and I just love the freedom that is now
a part of my life. I have the mental and emotional space to invest in others
and to truly care - without feeling drained or wearied.
I loved this
Ullie-Kaye
poem because it really speaks to life right now...
GLISTENING, SMILING, AND LIVING LIGHTLY
I do feel that I'm glistening, and smiling, and harvesting light these days
- despite the scars and the wind tossed hair. I look at my hip scar, I look
at my neck scar (from
my parathyroidectomy
in July), I look at the mental scars that my toxic job left behind, and I
feel like they're badges of honour that show I weathered storms and came
through stronger and with grace. I feel light inside and full of hope for
the future, there's nothing
weighing me down
anymore - just a sense of peace in my heart.
"I've lived some years, and I have learned the greatest lessons" - and one
of those lessons is to focus on living life one day at a time - with
gratitude, grace, and a smile. That's what Living Lightly looks like for me,
and this year has been instrumental in discovering what a truly happy life
looks and feels like - and it's lovely.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
I love the concept of an annual guiding word rather than making resolutions
or bucket lists - it just seems to work for me. Did you have a #WOTY? Did it
help you get to a better place?
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You've certainly lived your word this year ... looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2024 ...
ReplyDeleteI'm mulling the 2024 word over Jo - I know the essence of what I want - just not the perfect word to articulate it. The struggle is real :D
DeleteHi Leanne - A word for a year is a good concept. Glad that living lightly has given you a lot of comfort. After all, at the end of the day, that's what we long for, is it not?
ReplyDeleteHi Pradeep - I really enjoy having a word to inspire through the year - a lot less pressure than new years resolutions! Living lightly has been a good reminder for me to live life in a way that feels pleasant - not striving to be something that I'm not. Now to figure out 2024!
DeleteSuch a fabulous word of the year for you Leanne, you've certainly lived it well! Will you be choosing a word for 2024?
ReplyDeleteHi Deb - it was what I needed for this last year and I feel like it's put me back on track for more authentic living. As I mentioned above to Jo, I'm mulling around a few words atm for 2024 - just trying to settle on one that exactly reflects what I'm looking for....
DeleteWhat a fabulous way to live your life! You did such a great job really embracing your "live lightly."
ReplyDeleteThanks Jo - I think it ended up being a great incentive to go with the flow and to stop basing my selfworth on doing - and just let myself "be". Onward and upward into 2024!
DeleteLeanne, lovely summary of why your WOTY was picked and how it helped you shift in mindset. And yes, once again our posts are a similar look back at the year! We are certainly in similar space there. I am also trying to live each day more mindfully.. or as you say with grace, gratitude and a smile. Some days it's easier than others.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking of picking a WOTY again this upcoming year. I hadn't for a couple of years, although a number of times my WOTY was very helpful. Maybe one this upcoming year will help me not look outward for validation, not allow others actions to impact me, and be more accepting of things - people and situations. One word that does all that!
Merry Christmas to you!
Hi Pat - I've been tossing around my WOTY for 2024 for the last month or so. I know what I want (similar to what you described!) but finding the right word to encompass that is actually more challenging than I thought. I think I may have settled on one - more a word to remind me of who I am this time - rather than who I want to be.
DeleteI'll be interested to see if you choose something because you'll have put a lot of thought into it and that always inspires me. Merry Christmas!
You've had a difficult year with your health and yet you've managed to turn it around so beautifully and inspire so many of us. Thanks, Leanne. Wishing you joy and every blessing as we approach the end of the year!
ReplyDeleteHi Corinne - I think we've both been on a journey of liberating ourselves from some of the mental and emotional weight we've been carrying - it's been a good year for me as far as letting things go (most of the time) and just enjoying being in the space I'm in. Finally accepting retirement and settling into that mindset has been a challenge in itself that I think I finally have my head around too. Bring on 2024!
DeleteI have not had a WOTY before but it has been interesting reading how it has helped turn the more difficulty times into positives. I do like the term 'badge of honour' for the trying phases of life as it sounds like you have emerged triumphant from a battle which I suppose in one way you have. I look forward to the WOTY for 2024.
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth - I find resolutions and bucket lists give me a sense of failing if I don't achieve them. A word of the year just feels easier and more general - but still inspires me to work on an area of my life that I feel needs some attention.
DeleteI have my 2024 word sorted (finally!) after finding about 6 that sort-of fitted but didn't feel quite right. I knew what I wanted, but not the word to describe it. My daughter ended up suggesting the one I'm going with - stay tuned for January 1st :)
Leanne, wanting the opposite of what we have is often good motivation for making change. Especially when what we have doesn't line up with our values. Your woty served you well. I'm excited to see what you come up with for 2024.
ReplyDeleteHi Suzanne - last year I made a last minute change to my Word and this year I've been choosing and discarding for the last month or more. I like the idea of a word that resonates with something that I'm wanting to flesh out - not too general, but also encompassing the goal. I think I've settled on one - but it's a bit "out there" so it'll be interesting to see how it plays out for 2024.
DeleteHi, Leanne - You have lived your WOTY brilliantly. This year a went with a pocket WOTY which worked especially well for me. It really became a mantra that I automatically found myself focussing on each day. I was thinking of keeping the same pocket WOTY for 2024...but just like that a new word came to me and I am super excited about it!
ReplyDeleteHi Donna - I really hope you share your pocket words on your blog - I think it sounds really interesting and also the why's behind them. I'm always inspired by the choices others make and their reasons for doing so. Some really stick and others seem to choose and then not follow through. Your "secret" word seems to have served you well.
DeleteLeanne,
ReplyDeleteGreat post....While you have been glistening this year, my WOTY was Shine.....And I think I have been Shining this year....pretty doing what you have done...discarding old commitments, venturing into new ones...Have not chosen my word for this year yet....Thanks so much for sharing....
Hugs,
Deb
Hi Deb - nothing beats shining our lights into the world and showing others that this time of life can be an absolute joy. Good luck with picking a new word for 2024. I've finally settled on ming - it's a bit 'different' but says how I want to be in the year ahead - I think!
DeleteI love that poem, Leanne. It resonates with me. I am pleased to hear that the heaviness has lifted from you. Those are some big challenges you had to work through. As you may recall, I changed my WOTY midway through the year. I started with Grounded and finished out the year with Empowered. Those words served me well.
ReplyDeleteHi Christie - Grounded was one of the words I was tossing around for 2024 - I'd forgotten it was your first pick for this year. I'm finding that words like Grounded are resonating with me atm and drawing me in that direction for the year ahead - just have to drill down to the exact word I'm looking for in the next couple of weeks!
DeleteI so understand why you chose to Live Lightly because those years before were HEAVY and I hear you. I too felt that strain and every so often I remind myself that ALL of us got changed by the pandemic and in 2024 it will be 4 years of it. Kids who were meant to start school in 2021 had a very mixed year of home learning and then a mix of "at home, at school" the next year. Our youngest grandchild was one. Anyway, now I have covid so all my precautions over almost 4 years did not stop it. I am thinking of what word or words may guide me in 2024 and right now my brain is too tired to do more. Take care Denyse
ReplyDeleteHi Denyse - sorry to hear about the covid diagnosis. I think we may have had it in October - but neither of us bothered testing because we were home and not exposed to anyone. It was a mild dose when all was said and done - but the foggy head lasted for a few weeks afterwards - which made me suspect it may have been covid and not just a bad cold. It's inevitable that we all catch it now it's so rife in the community. In hindsight all the isolation and lockdowns probably caused more harm than good for a lot of children and many people who would have ridden out a covid infection without any problems. I think we should have cared for our elderly and infirm and then allowed more freedom for the general population to decide how they wanted to deal with it all. I'm so glad those years are behind us and I hope we never end up back there again - if I never wear another mask I'll be very happy!
DeleteI love that you've found the balance you need, and have more energy to help others. I love the concept of losing mental weight. We can all do with a bit of that.
ReplyDeleteHi Lydia - it's certainly been a year of acceptance for me - settling into this "retired" mindset and allowing myself the grace to do things on my own terms and not how I think I "should" be doing them :)
DeleteI love your descriptions of living gently and lightly. It can be challenging to know what and when to let go of, but it's been the best part of this time of life indeed. The word I chose for this year is "renewal." There are many things I've loved that I just didn't give enough time and attention to--so this year, may they take center stage!
ReplyDeleteHi Linda - I like the idea of "renewal" - it's fresh like my living lightly was. I think learning to let go and not trying to control every moment of life is so freeing and I wish I'd learnt how to do it a lot earlier in my journey.....but it's never too late! :)
Delete