Welcome 2015

Since 2013 I have set a “theme word” for myself to carry through the new year. In 2013 it was “intently”. In 2014 it was “rooted”. This year, in 2015, my word is “welcome”.

image

Photo taken of sunrise on 31 December 2014 along the Suffolk coast, in England

The word appeared to me as I was doing some vision work. I have been working with Kelly & Maggie of Strong Body Whole Heart doing their Life By Design course. I decided that I wanted to do a little work on myself, to align my values and actions, and to live more intentionally (rather than by default), and the course was the perfect fit for me. One of the key aspects early on is identifying a personal vision.

Welcome is such a wide ranging word. To create a welcoming environment where everyone (including myself) feels at ease. To welcome challenges I face as opportunities to grow myself. To welcome stumbling blocks as new paths rather than ends to dreams.

A key part of creating this “welcoming space” for myself in 2015 will be a declutter and refresh of my spaces.

I have already started this electronically. Way back in 2007 I stopped caring about filing away my emails. But after 7 years of unsorted mess – online clutter – I realise that the clutter is hindering me from feeling at ease with this aspect of my life. So I am tackling it.

I am working with Jill Poon of Concept168 to refresh my website and bring it back into a format that I know how to self manage. The process is taking time (more time than either Jill or I would prefer I am sure), and finding a designer to work with took me almost a year (with some big missteps and lessons learned for me in the process), but I am optimistic that soon my online presence will be more welcoming and all encompassing – to visitors as well as for me when it comes to more regular blogging and updates.

I am building new daily habits to ensure that my home feels more “welcome” to me. I think of it as taking a leaf out of the Fly Lady‘s book, and personalising her approach, of just 15 minutes a day to work on the “hot spot” areas in your house to help me to feel happier in my space.

We are trying our hand at building new weekly habits at home, too. I was inspired by the “Friday Night Meatballs” post I read on Serious Eats, so we are trying our hand at Simple Saturday Suppers this year, aiming to have friends around for casual suppers each Saturday when we are in town and free. Our aim is to always serve a big plate of pasta, family style, with salad. Last Saturday we kicked off the year with meatballs cooked according to The Silver Spoon.

This coming Saturday I am thinking of another Silver Spoon recipe, for pumpkin penne. Let me know if you’d like to join us.

And I am doing some soul searching – to see how “welcome” aligns with my 2015 athletic goals. This is a hard conversation with myself – and the outcome may be unexpected. Stay tuned to see how this unfolds!

2015… Welcome!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *