Yep, I'm Going There: My One Little Word

It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves - in finding themselves.  -Andre Gide (from Brainy-Quote)

It's a new year, but are we any different?
Standing in line at the grocery store this evening, I had to smile.  The magazines all featured pictures of the thin and fit.  Carts no longer contained sugar, cookies, snack food, and holiday beverages, instead everyone had Weight Watcher meals, vegetables, and grains.  Everybody waited in line wearing their "somehow I'm different today" looks as they strive to put their best foot forward in the new year.

I smile to myself, "Who are we kidding?" I wonder as I wait in the long check out line.  Every once in awhile I pull out a resolution or two, but for the most part I try not to fool myself.  I'm constantly trying to improve, don't get me wrong, but I'm probably not going to make it to the gym anymore than I did last year.  I'm probably going to drink just as much coffee and I can't really live without chocolate.

Many of my friends have been talking about choosing their One Little Word for the new year.  There has been talk on Twitter, Facebook and blogs about the words they'll let guide them for the year.  I tried this in 2012 with the word "gratitude."  Last year, I just decided to let the New Year roll by with no crazy promises.  As we said goodbye to 2013 and moved toward 2014 I considered a resolution, a word, a challenge (my 2011 fiasco), or something, but nothing really felt right.  I was quite fine with letting another New Year slip by without pomp and circumstance.

Then this morning I stopped by Tammy and Clare's post at Assessment in Perspective.  They were celebrating their new word.  You'll have to stop by their post, Celebrating Our One Little Word 2014, to find their words and some information about OLW.   Tammy talked about how her word was choosing her.  After reading their post, I decided to not really force a word (or a resolution or a new plan), but instead to see if it found me.

Today's DISCOVERY:
spinach, goat cheese, red pepper
crepe from Taste of Belgium 

My One Little Word
Today I talked my husband, Jeff, into venturing out before the cold came.  We've been entertaining for days and getting out of the house seemed a great idea.  We decided to go into Columbus to the Columbus Museum of Art to walk around for a bit.  It had been a very long time since we'd been there.  There was an interesting exhibition of Columbus artist, George Bellows, and a fun Lego exhibit.

After leaving the museum we meandered to the North Market.  As we walked around enjoying the afternoon sampling flavored popcorn, smelling spices, looking at different cheeses, sipping coffee, and checking out the variety of ethnic foods, my word hit me:  DISCOVER.

When we travel we usually find ourselves in a city.  I enjoy discovering new food, unique shops, historic sites, and the culture of an area.  I always wonder why I don't know as much about our own city as I do about all those we visit.  I could tell you more places to go in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, than I could suggest to you right where I live.

In the weeks to come I'm going to think about this word a little more.  I'm also going to think about what it means to me.  Though there are some things I'd like to find out more about, I think DISCOVERY, at least for me, will also be about those random surprises I find that make me want to dig a little deeper; the things that unexpectedly surprise and fascinate me.

Stay tuned
In the weeks to come I hope you'll hear more about my word.  I'm thinking on this blog you'll be hearing more about how the word plays out on the educational side of my life, and on Merely Day by Day I'll be sharing my life DISCOVERIES, but who knows.