Reduce

I have been listening to the podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin for quite a while. While not a new concept on the podcast, this year I was attracted to the concept of having a word for the year. The word represents an intention for how you want to spend your year.

Stepping back for a moment, I have always thought about new year's resolutions, made a few, but, like everyone else, lost sight of them shortly after jumping back into post holiday real life. When this Jan 1 rolled around, I did not have any fully formed thoughts to write down as resolutions. But, in listening to Happier, the concept of having a word of the year really jumped out at me. 

One thing frequently mentioned on Happier is the premise that "outer order leads to inner calm". I have lately been feeling overwhelmed by my stash of crafty things. I love them all but am surrounded.  I have been chipping away at the yarn for a while but not making much progress on the fabric. And there are all of those other fun things I have picked up at various places that I wanted to try but have never unwrapped.  So, I thought my word of the year (or maybe the next decade but we'll see how this year goes) is Reduce. 

Reduce the stash, reduce the number of items in my closet, reduce my weight a bit, reduce stress by working from home more often, just reduce. And it is working. Slowly, but working. I've started to make time for quilting once a week. I've been more targeted about finishing knitting projects, I have reduced my Ravelry queue and am not buying patterns randomly. I have found myself saying "reduce" to myself in other decisions I have made to date. And it is easier than having a list of 5 resolutions. It is one word, to be interpreted how I want to interpret it in the moment. And a pleasant side effect, reduce leads to reduced spending and a few more dollars in my jeans. Perfect. 

Just some of my stash to be reduced ...