2025 Says... I Don't Know Yet.

I'll be waiting and listening.

I am a student of astrology, and oracle cards, and deeply woo-woo stuff. I believe in affirmations, insomuch as there’s no downside to saying nice things about your life, about yourself. I believe in the power of words— words are spells, words work magic, words matter.

So the idea of picking a word for the whole year presently seems overwhelmingly impossible. I did it last year with no issue, no hesitation— I just picked a word from a Taylor Swift song and instantly felt it fit with my vision for the 2024 experience.

Bejeweled, by the way, was last year’s word.

Cool, that was aspirational and sparkly and probably a little extra.

“bejeweled”, as imagined by the AI of substack

My year in review? It was mostly all great. Not like rhinestone and glitter and sequins great, but it was good. I loved a lot of it, and I loved all of the people I got to be with in it. That’s a really great year, actually.

So why the struggle picking a word this year? I have a tired brain, probably a little under-caffeinated for my standards, and I haven’t given the process enough time. We are, after all, just 5 days into this calendar, and at the end of winter break with a six year old who charms every waking minute of my days when he’s on break. Bless the public school system. What an invaluable institution that I love so much even when it fails our society (looking at you, standardized testing)— it’s so necessary, and I believe it does benefit our kid so much. But back to the word-picking thing.

To get the word for 2025, I will do the thing I have set out to do for a few years, which is show up. By that I mean I will embrace the situation at hand, in front of my face, not the scary version of events I have catastrophized in my mind, not the idyllic existence best left to storybooks without editors. I am here in this life to meet it, with love and with hope. I am in control of zero things, in reality, outside of my own feelings. Truth is, I am unsure of the level of control any one of us has over their own feelings. There is a metaphorical and metaphysical crap-ton of poop to work through in any given moment. Sometimes our feelings are a lot to try and manage.

So I’ll show up. And I am sure a word will drop in from the heavens (or my headphones) and I will seize it with the vim and vigor required for facing 2025. I may ask the cards and the stars what to expect, I might meditate on it, or I may go in with blind faith and a Spotify playlist.

Y’all. That’s it. I need to make a new playlist, and that will definitely help this whole process.

So there! I have a plan to get to the word: Send child to school, drink the coffee, listen to and curate music like it’s a vision board, but it’ll be a vibe soundingboard.

This, I think, is how life gets made: through the writing it down, working it out, sharing the process like it may be useful, or at the very least entertaining. We are here for joy, and experience, and the sharing of all of it. So I’ll show up, and I’ll get to work on this gift of 2025. I’ll let you know when I’ve got a playlist, and, hopefully, a word.

Let me know your favorite songs in the comments, and maybe you’ll see your picks on the list. Better yet, share your favorite playlists! I am glad you’re here, and I look forward to being with you this year!