Today I Was Thoughtful

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Today I was thoughtful. 

Well not specifically today, but this year I was thoughtful. 

“Thoughtful” was my Word of the Year for 2023, and I am SO glad it was! When I chose the word “courageous” for 2022, it was definitely my choice. I wanted to grow in courage that year, so I decided that’s what my word would be. 

For 2023, I put it on my list as a potential word to focus on. As I sat with my list of words, which also included “intentional” and “stewardship,” it felt less like I was choosing “thoughtful” and more that God was choosing it for me. I am so grateful for this clarity from Holy Spirit. I don’t often receive the clarity I seek, but this one was more clear. I wanted to be thoughtful in what I said, what I wrote, and what I did. It felt as if that’s what God was wanting for me, too. And throughout the year this was made more clear by the amount of opportunities I had to be thoughtful. 

How can I thoughtfully pursue this job?

What’s the best way I can be thoughtful in this relationship?

Am I doing this thoughtfully, or just doing it?

At times, these seemed like silly questions, until I realized how important they actually were. As a writer, I always have things to say! But they aren’t always thoughtful or thoughtfully said. This is why we have rough drafts! Get the words out, then go back and make sense of them. Or leave them in your drafts; not all of our words need to be shared with the world. 

Unfortunately, outside of writing we don’t have this same opportunity. We don’t get to have a rough draft conversation with a friend. We don’t get to go back and edit what we say, do, or agree to. 

Having this focus throughout my year helped me to practice restraint when necessary. It helped me discern my next steps more carefully. It’s easy for me to see what things went better because of it. I wonder what difficulty the year would have had if it wasn’t for this focus? 

Not only did it make things better for me, it made what I did better. It’s easy for me to get caught up in the “doing,” especially for things that are part of my routine. They can quickly become an afterthought or just part of the rhythm. While this can be helpful in times of stress or change, I don’t want to regularly do things just to do them. It’s important for me to do them thoughtfully. 

Today I was thoughtful. I thoughtfully considered my next steps. And it was good.