Me in California, Summer, 2021. 
Part of my "vision" for this year is to spend more time there. I grew up  in San Pedro, and being in the sun in my home state is one of my happy places!

Do you set New Year's resolutions? Intentions? Choose a word of the year? For the last few years, I've done the latter. I try to let my word guide the year, more or less, and it's worked to varying success. This year, I was oscillating between the words "play" and "gratitude," and then, during a Zoom New Year's event focused on choosing our word of the year, hosted by Nina Collins and Revel, for women overy forty, I studied a list of words, and the word "Vision" hit me hard. 

As writers, we need "Visions," right? We need to see. I know I need to work on being more observant. I need to see through my vision of this novel and then work on a new vision for the next one. Soon I'll be teaching a class at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival on ReVision. When I looked up the word in my favorite dictionary (Merriam-Webster) after the session, I knew I'd found my word:

Essential Meaning of vision

1the ability to see sight or eyesightShe has good/poor vision.She has normal vision. = She has 20/20 vision.
something that you imagine a picture that you see in your mindWe had visions of fame and fortune.the architect's vision for the new buildingShe had a clear vision of what she wanted to do.
3something that you see or dream especially as part of a religious or supernatural experienceHe had a vision of Christ.The idea came to me in a vision.

Full Definition of vision

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1athe act or power of seeing SIGHT
bthe special sense by which the qualities of an object (such as color, luminosity, shape, and size) constituting its appearance are perceived through a process in which light rays entering the eye are transformed by the retina into electrical signals that are transmitted to the brain via the optic nerve
2asomething seen in a dream, trance, or ecstasyespecially a supernatural appearance that conveys a revelation
ba thought, concept, or object formed by the imagination
ca manifestation to the senses of something immateriallook, not at visions, but at realities— Edith Wharton
3athe act or power of imagination
b(1)mode of seeing or conceiving
(2)unusual discernment or foresighta person of vision
cdirect mystical awareness of the supernatural usually in visible form
4asomething seen
ba lovely or charming sight


What is your word of the year? If you have one, or if this post has inspired you to choose one, please leave your word in the comments, please! 

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