Beginning 2011: Word of the Year, Color of the Year, & Intentions In Visual Form

2011 is off to a bright start.  I gave 2010 an upbeat send-off Saturday and spent the rest of the weekend considering what I want out of this brand new year.

First up…

My Word of the Year

As 2010 wound down, my word of the year started cropping up all over the place.  It was suddenly frequenting the greeting when I signed into Yogaglo.  (I signed into Yogaglo every single day last month, during a self-imposed 31 days of yoga challenge, which I am repeating this month.)  A dear friend sent me a few of Jen Lemen’s (now out-of-print) inspirational notes at the end of November, one of which had my word of the year in it.  My word jumped out at me everywhere between Thanksgiving and the New Year, sort of like the teenage girls in old footage of Elvis appearances or Beatlemania.

“Pick me!  Pick me!” it screamed,  “Oh, please pick me!  I am destined to be your word!”

At first I didn’t want to.  It scared me.  But I sat with it, heard it out, and had an epiphany: this is bedrock, bedrock that I’ve largely been missing.  Somewhere along the way across the past few years, I lost it.  When I realized that, I stopped fighting.  I let it settle in.  I’m comfortable with it, and I look forward to seeing where it takes me.  I know it’s going to take me to my edges, push me up against the walls of my comfort zone , forcing me to move those walls, but I know I’ll learn a great deal and grow.

Last year, I chose my word.  This year, my word chose me.

Without further ado, here it is, given form by the pendant that will soon be hanging around my neck as an ever-present (or nearly ever-present) reminder:

My Word of the Year, Trust, in necklace form.

Yes, Trust is my guide word for 2011.  Eeek.

Near the Winter Solstice, I had a little chat with my stucknesses.  I asked them why they were there.

Basically, it all boils down to trust.

…Trust in myself, in my inner compass, and that I can handle whatever life presents me with.

…Trust that I’ll be able to find prosperous work (that is fulfilling instead of draining) after this job ends, as it is supposed to soon, with my boss’s retirement.

…Trust in my fellow human beings unless my gut says otherwise, rather than cutting myself off so often, because sometimes I don’t even feel I can trust my nearest and dearest enough to be vulnerable enough to say what’s on my mind.  (That is all me.  Vulnerability terrifies me.)

…Trust that my dreams are with me for a reason.

…Trust that happiness is waiting for me, and that, if I leap, the proverbial net will, indeed, appear, that my needs will be met.

…Trust that there is, in the words of Julia Cameron, “a divine plan of goodness for me.”

…Trust that everything that happens, happens for a reason; that everything that happens is a learning and growing opportunity.

At first, I wanted to chalk the stuckness up to lack of faith, but faith involves trusting that there’s something in which to have faith.

Trust is going to take practice, but perhaps it is–as it with so many other things in life– in the practice that the value lies.  Every day is a chance to allow it into my life.

My Color of the Year

Until New Year’s Eve, I hadn’t heard about people choosing a color of the year, but Bridget Pilloud, whom I follow on Twitter (really cool, wise lady…go, check her out), posted about it and I felt game.  I took her suggestion, even checking with the color selector, and came up with the color I originally thought:

(Though, obviously, it’s the Color of the Year for 2011.)

You can read Bridget’s full post on the significance of yellow, in general, here.  About my particular shade, she said the following:

“Rebekah, what does it mean to be benevolent with your power? for yourself? for others? This is your year to glow, standing in your power, like a lioness. It sounds gorgeous, doesn’t it? It is! To fully live this, remember your balance and sunny attitude and the recognition that each of us have within the power to change our lives. Shine on Rebekah!”

To this, I heard a deep down, “YES!”

The caveat: I have to trust my ability to stand in my power, and allow myself balance and a sunny attitude.

This past year, for the record, after using the color selector with last year’s concepts and word of the year, was a yellow, too, though a different shade.  2010 was a more primary yellow, all about seeing where my boundaries weren’t working, and the many ways and instances in which I gave my power away, or used it to lash out instead of benefit myself or others.

This year is building on that foundation.

Intentions in Visual Form: My 2011 Vision Board

The last thing I want to share the vision board I began Saturday, on New Year’s Day, and completed yesterday.  It took a while for me to find the images, then combine them in a way that felt right.  But when I did, I let out a deep sigh and smiled.

Here it is:

My 2011 vision board. (Click to enlarge.)

I am pretty sure it speaks for itself.  In any case, I am going to let it works its own magic instead of trying to spell it all out myself.  It’s presently hanging to the right of my bed where I’ll see it every night I crawl into bed and every morning when I get up, and all the other time I spend in my room.

More to Come…

There is more to come in regard to my 2011.  I am presently working my way through my copy of the ever-lovely Goddess Leonie‘s 2011: Creating My Goddess Year workbook, planner + calendar, and I plan to share a few pages from it tomorrow.  (I’ve been wending my way through it for a few days now.)

For a few other intentions, see last week’s Wishcasting post.

Happy 2011!  May this year be bright, blessed, and filled with happiness!