one little word 2014 wrap-up: light

Last year, in the middle of my fourth Northeastern winter, I decided my one little word for 2014 would be light.

I chased that word through the dark, cold months – snapping photos of bold, blue winter skies (see above) and escaping to San Diego with the hubs when I couldn’t take it any more. We soaked in the sun for four glorious days, and I’m convinced it got me through the rest of the winter.

As the days lengthened into spring and summer, I stopped pursuing my word quite so consciously – though it was always there when I looked for it again.

The autumn light in Harvard Square is particularly lovely, and I snapped dozens of photos this fall, trying to pay attention and soak up the clear golden days.

During a hectic December, I confess I didn’t think about my word much – until I glanced out the window at work one afternoon and saw that the sun had finally come out after two grey, misty days in a row.

I didn’t hesitate. I threw on my green coat and headed outside, standing on the back steps of my building with my hands shoved deep into my pockets, soaking in the sunshine and the blue sky. I snapped the photo above, then simply stood there, head thrown back, letting the light flood over me.

I was out there for less than ten minutes, but it saved my entire day. And I realized: I’d been pursuing my word all along.

Every time I light a candle, every time I watch a sunset, every time I throw my head back and gaze at the sky, the light is there, waiting for me. I’m always seeking it out, snapping photos of it, watching how it highlights some things and throws others into shadow. I love what it does to faces, how it illuminates and reflects and beckons, how it’s never still, always changing. I did not do particularly well with the metaphorical aspects of my word this year, but the literal one, the visible one, is woven into my psyche.

I’m easing into 2015 with a new word, gentle (about which more soon). But I will continue to chase the light. If you’re looking for me on a sunny day this winter, there’s a good chance you’ll find me outside, soaking up any scrap of light I can find.

If you chose a word for 2014, how did it go? Or if you chose a word for 2015, how’s it going so far?