It is the end of February and it occurred to me to check in with how everyone is doing with their word of the year. Remember way back in the beginning of January, some of you chose a word for the year? At first, I thought a word for the year was rather limiting, but then, in classical New Thought fashion, I had a new thought about it. Instead of a word, I began to think of it as a concept, and that opened up a whole new vista for me.

So my word is enthusiasm. And I had to find some balance there because I got a little over enthusiastic for a while. Which looked like some sort of frenzied whirling dervish with a mood disorder. LOL! Such is the power of our word guys. So I tempered my enthusiasm with things like release and faith, and now I am nicely humming along.

And I happened across a reading this morning about enthusiasm. It’s in a book called New Thoughts for Today, published by Associated New Thought Network, and is a compilation of readings by different New Thought authors. This reading was titled “ Enthusi-usi-usi-asm.” It went back to the Greek origins of the word, explaining that enthusiasm came from the words en and theos. Entheos means god filled. Which I am. But then the reading went on to say that enthusiasm wasn’t a result but a cause. AHHHH. THERE! That’s the ticket right there! We don’t just choose these words to embody the emotion of them. We choose them as a foundation to give us power.

The reading, written by Rev. Dr. Michele Whittington, went on to say, “ Enthusiasm gives us the power to create, not just to react; the power to be responsible, not just to be responsive; the power to be the cause for good.”

Yes.

So today I continue my enthusiasm, knowing it is giving me the creativity, responsibility and the power to do my good work in the world.

If you want to take a deeper dive into your word for the year, see if any books that you typically read have anything to say about your word. Look up your word in the dictionary. Google it. Consider what any of those things has to say about it.

Have fun and I’d love to hear what you discover!

In other news, I would love it if you subscribed to my YouTube channel: @KarenLinsleyMA. And if you checked out my podcast called Fearlessly Feral Living, which you can find where ever you listen to podcasts.