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Optional Monthly Question: [not my words] Do you have a word of the year? Is there one word that sums up what you need to work on or change in the coming year? For instance, in 2021 my word of the year was Finish. I was determined to finish my first draft by the end of the year. In 2022, my word of the year was Ease. I want to get my process, systems, finances, and routines where life flows with ease and less chaos. What is your word for 2023? Why?
I’m trying really hard not to sink into a deep depression right now. The last few years have been rough, in general, but the last quarter of 2022 was just too much. All I wanted for the holiday was to spend time with my family. Instead, I got to be sick and quarantined. I’m so tired of everything being so hard.
I’m not delusional.
I recognize that there are people in this world far worse off than I am, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m overwhelmed with constantly trying to cope with all the struggles. I was almost hit by cars twice and sustained mild physical injuries from each incident. I had the flu in the Fall and did nothing for my birthday. I got COVID on Christmas Day and spent the week in bed. I mean like really, too weak to even binge-watch TV. I’ve had work and life traumas including ongoing health issues resulting in increased anxiety and PTSD. My writing continues to be a struggle and now I can barely even read for pleasure. Plus, I lost my wedding ring- removed while laid up so my hand wouldn’t swell and now it’s nowhere to be found. On top of all that, my dog is constantly sick- I’m currently nursing her back to health as I write this blog post.
I know there are so many ways in which I’m blessed. When my PC crashed on Dec 21st, my new Mac had just arrived in the mail. I’m grateful for that, but the weeks leading up to the crash were a real struggle. Plus, Macs are a lot more expensive than PCs- it took a lot of hard work to save up for it. I need time to recover- time I didn’t get over the holiday, and time that I can’t get now that I have to be back at work.
I guess my word for 2023 is recovery. It’s all I really want.
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#iwsgbookclub
Member Spotlight
Fractions of Existence | Amazon
Craft Book
The Emotional Craft of Fiction | Amazon | Bookshop.org
No other updates this month.
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What’s your word for 2023?
It may take some time, but I promise, I will eventually stop by your blog. My response time has gotten slower but I’m still making my rounds.
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After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Jemima Pett,
Debs Carey,
Kim Lajevardi,
Sarah Foster,
Natalie Aguirre, and
T. Powell Coltrin!
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Thank you for making it this far down the virtual page. Kudos to you! I’d love to know what you thought of this post in the comments below. Stay safe and be blessed.
27 replies on “#IWSG Jan. 2023- New Year, new hope; right?”
I hope your recovery goes well — take care of your mental health, it’s important. Happy 2023!
Ronel visiting for IWSG day An Author’s Goals for 2023
Thank you Ronel. Happy New Year!
Recovery is an important word. Sorry you had to go through all that. It’s really hard during the pandemic.
“Without having a goal, it’s difficult to score.” Paul Arden
I hope 2023 will become everything you need it to be.
J Lenni Dorner (he/him or they/them) ~ Reference& Speculative Fiction Author, OperationAwesome6 Debut Author Interviewer, and Co-host of the #AtoZchallenge
Thank you, J. I’m reevaluating a lot right now and know I need to make some changes.
I’m sorry! Yes, you need recovery. Prayers that happens this year.
Thank you, Alex. It is a new year, so the possibilities are there.
Hi Toi,
First, Happy New Year!
I sincerely pray that things go slower for you so that you have the time to recover.
Wishing you the very best for 2023.
Shalom aleichem
Happy New Year, Pat. Thanks for the kind words.
Oh Toi, you’ve had a rough and challenging time. I do hope that 2023 provides you with ample recovery and allows you to progress with a spring in your step once more. Wishing you only the best for 2023.
Debs posting today from Fiction Can Be Fun
Also found at Debs Despatches
Thank you for the kind words and well wishes.
Wishing you all the recovery and healing you need. Praying for all the recovery and healing you need, actually, physically and mentally.
Thank you, Tyrean. Your wods mean a lot.
Toi, I am so sorry. That’s more than any one person should be forced to handle. Hoping you get your healing and recovery.
Thank you. I do feel recovery slowly coming on, one weekend at a time.
Oh gosh. I feel you. I feel you so much. 2023 was hard and the end of 2023 was even harder. I am having a very hard time coping. Two of my cats are sick and require around the clock meds and to be watched carefully. One went to an emergency clinic twice. Once the day after Christmas and the second time on New Year’s Eve. It has been a lot, and things just keep popping up. I hope 2023 is a much kinder, gentler year for the both of us. I hope your dog gets better, you find your ring, and that you get back to yourself after having COVID. Wishing you so much recovery in 2023.
Oops. I had 2023 on the brain. I meant 2022 in the beginning of my comment there.
Thank you for the well wishes and the understanding. I hurts my heart to hear your kitties are sick. I hope they are on the road to recovery. Margie needs surgery but we think she’ll be okay. She had an infection that caused some rotting of teeth and other internal issues. I count myself blessed, at least I don’t need surgery.
I’m sorry to hear how hard you’ve been hit lately, Toi. Being sick is the last thing you need when you’re already facing tough times. I hope you’ll be able to recover physically and mentally, as well as find your ring. Praying 2023 will be a time of rest and peace!
Thank you, Kim. Your words really help. Slow, week by week, I’m finding some recovery, here and there.
I’m sorry things have been so hard lately. Take care of yourself and I hope this year will be a much better year!
Thanks, Sarah. I’m hoping 2023 will surprise me in a good way.
You have been through so much. Take time to recover completely. Being sick is no fun. Losing your wedding ring is such an awful feeling. Hubs lost his. It’s in our house…somewhere. He feels bad about it, of course. We’ll find it some day. I hope you recover well enough to enjoy life.
Thank you, Diane. My hubs keeps looking for mine too, it should be in the house, but I think it might have fallen into a waste bin and is long gone. I’m getting a little recovery on the week ends, but starting out the year needing a vacation is rough.
Toi, I’m so sorry to read about your challenges. That’s a lot to deal with. Look after yourself.
I’m sending a boost of positivity and hope you heal as soon as possible.
All the best for 2023!
Thank you, Michelle. I have this tiny cough that won’t go away but am otherwise healthy. Margie nees surgery but I think she’ll recover well from it. Week by week, I keep finding short/small moments of recovery until I can take some time off.
I’d like to send you a great big hug with this response! I wish you could take a couple more weeks off to recover properly, but know that is a luxury few people have. Meanwhile, I’ll just offer one thing: it doesn’t matter that there are people with bigger problems than yours. Your pain is real, and that’s what counts. I know that many widows are left in circumstances that make it much harder than mine do, but that doesn’t change my grief and rage and hurt one iota. That doesn’t seem to be how suffering works. Feel no guilt for being sad, tired, and even angry.
I hope your dog didn’t swallow your wedding ring!
Thank you so much, Rebecca. Your words really do mean a lot. I appreciate your acceptance as well. Margie didn’t eat my ring and yet she still needs to have surgery. We are both on the mend and hoping for the best.