resolution – Tamara Letter

One Word 2023

January 1, 2023January 1, 2023 Tamara

Last year my father-in-law surprised me with an AeroGarden so I could successfully grow fresh herbs in my home. It was an exciting gift to receive as gardening in any form is not one of my strengths.

There were only three steps to success: plug in the device, insert the seed pod, and add water mixed with MiracleGro. Everything else was automated. The overhead light turned on with a timer and the water level indicator turned red when it needed to be refilled.

That’s it.

Who knew growth could be so easy?

As my AeroGarden began to sprout tiny seedlings, I felt the rumblings of change in my day-to-day world as well. My #OneWord2022 of “Continue” was picking up speed as we experienced nearly every family milestone possible over the course of a few months:

A funeral (Great-Grandma Letter)
Two graduations (Brennan – college, Daniel – high school)
Moving (Brennan and Katrina moved out of their separate apartments and their childhood homes)
Purchasing a home (Katrina and Brennan, which included another round of moving)
Beach Week (Daniel and 13 friends with Rich as chaperone)
Family vacation (Disney Cruise, which resulted in 3/6 of us getting COVID, egads)
A new baby (our nephew’s son, the first great-grandchild for Grandpa Letter)
50th birthday celebrations (Rich, Lisa, and I)
Bridal showers and a wedding (Katrina and Brennan – this event alone could be a 200 page book!)
All things college (Daniel)
- Making a final choice of which college to attend (VT vs ODU)
- Applying for scholarships
- Completing pre-req modules for the Mechanical Engineering Program
- Selecting a roommate and moving into a dorm
Becoming a teenager (Caleb)
Getting braces (Caleb)

In August, we grappled with the unexpected loss of Daniel’s good friend, Efe, whose tragic death coincided with the busiest time of the year. In less than one week, our son moved into college, returned home to be a pallbearer in his friend’s funeral, then stood at the altar as a groomsman in his sister’s wedding. The next day he began college classes.

Growth, we discovered, wasn’t easy after all.

Sometimes it meant holding steady in the midst of chaos.

Other times it meant letting go of things you never thought you would lose.

The milestone moments continued, as Katrina and Brennan explored Italy on their honeymoon and I began my 26th year in education. I had the honor of presenting to several organizations about A Passion for Kindness and personally autographing hundreds of books (always a thrill!) I even kicked off a new kindness initiative of #50RAKs to celebrate my 50th birthday, which I’m halfway through completing (more posts to come!)

I watched in awe as Katrina presented a TEDx talk at CNU, sharing her journey in “Finding Purpose: Choosing Creation in a World of Consumption” and marveled at Brennan’s success launching his business, Purpose Design Co., into a full-time entrepreneurship.

I made time to mark a few things off my bucket list, like reconnecting with my cousin Sara in Boston, whom I hadn’t seen in more than thirty years, and attending my very first college football game. I also visited the September 11 museum in New York City with Grandpa Letter and Rich’s sisters/nieces as the year came to a close.

When I chose my #OneWord2022 as “Continue,” I didn’t realize how it would pull us through so many challenges. The highs and lows of summer became a trampoline of change, bouncing us higher and higher into realms we’d never experienced. There were incredible heights of joy, but also unexpected turbulence of twists and turns.

Even still, we continued on.

We loved.

We learned.

We grew.

As I sit today reflecting on the past year, my gaze catches a glimpse of the AeroGarden on my bookshelf. It, too, has continued to grow in the midst of it all. The mint is flourishing and the basil grows thick and tall. It’s almost to the point of being out of control, so I know I need to tend to it soon.

I’m then reminded of the purpose in pruning: to remove that which is no longer needed to allow for new growth to appear.

In an instant, my #OneWord for 2023 became clear:

Renew.

It’s time to start again.

To take a breath.

To clear out the old and make space for the new.

To pull back in order to move forward.

I’m excited to see all that the new year has to offer, but I’m also more appreciative for the quiet and calm. There is significant beauty in closing one chapter to begin another and I hope you can discover that beauty, too.

As always, I appreciate the time you take out of your own busy life to share in my adventures. Your encouragement and support mean so much! My life is enriched knowing our connection is merely a click away.

I hope 2023 brings moments of peace and joy as you continue the great work ahead with love and kindness. The world is a better place because you are here!

One Word Goals

2023 – Renew

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kindness, reflection, writing

One Word 2020

January 1, 2020January 1, 2020 Tamara

Where do you find your inspiration?

What guides you in your vision for the upcoming year?

How do you keep your focus on your goals from one month to the next?

For many years, I made a list of resolutions on the first day of the new year. I wanted to keep my house clean. Spend more time with family. Write more. Read more. Exercise more. I would attack my list with herculean strength, pushing myself to exhaustion trying to do it all, only to fall into the vast pit of failure when my goals were never attained.

In 2016, I called it quits. I’d had enough. I was barely treading water as my mother-in-law battled Stage 4 colon cancer and my mom battled Stage 4 lung cancer. Resolutions for a year meant nothing when your daily vision was shrouded in darkness.

That was the year I chose one word as a focus instead of a “must-do” list of limitations. I wrote my word on a post-it note and reflected on it throughout the year. It became a ray of light that guided my way.

2016 was the year I chose joy.

Or, perhaps, joy chose me.

See, 2016 was not a year of joy by most accounts. I lost my mother-in-law in March and several other family members throughout the year. It was the year my mother had to start experimental trials to battle a disease that had no mercy and would ultimately claim her life the following year. But joy was my focus and each day I woke up determined to find something joyful in the world around me.

I started to re-evaluate the relationships in my life and made the choice to step away from toxic people whose negativity pulled me down. I sought out positive people and refocused my social media accounts to connect with those who brought me joy through words and actions. I continued my kindness journey by sharing joy with others when I could.

It worked.

I ended 2016 realizing our mindsets are a powerful force in our satisfaction and stability in an uncertain world. While we can’t always change the circumstances we encounter, we most certainly can choose how we react to them.

In 2017, I chose resilience as my one word, anticipating the trials and tribulations that would surely come my way. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy as I held my mother’s hand as she took her last breath and I navigated major life transitions with my oldest child leaving home to attend college. Each time I felt knocked down by life, my one word served as a reminder to pick myself back up and keep going.

Then the magic of 2018 began with the word inspire. I submitted my very first book proposal to Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc. and 48 hours later I was signing a contract that would transform my passion of being a writer into my life’s dream of becoming a published author. My year was spent writing, revising, and editing which resulted in stretching myself in ways I never knew possible. My passion for kindness poured from my soul as I wrote in the morning. I wrote after the kids were in bed. I wrote on vacations, during road trips, and on flights across the country. My writing consumed my personal time, but I reminded myself that the sacrifice was necessary (and worth it!) for the opportunity to inspire others.

It was during that time that I received the 2018 R.E.B. Award for Teaching Excellence, which fully funded a professional learning experience to meet Kindness Cultivators around the world and learn more about their passions and programs. I was also named the 2019 Teacher of the Year for Mechanicsville Elementary which was an honor I held dear to my heart having served students and staff there for more than a decade.

Realizing 2019 would create unique opportunities to travel and speak to others about my passion for kindness, I chose the word uplift to be my focus this past year. This word guided me through my very first book release and all the incredible experiences that followed, which I detailed in my recent blog post, “Becoming an Author in 2019.”

Now it’s time to choose a new word to carry me through 2020. As I reflect on the past few years, and all the has happened in this life journey of mine, I keep thinking about my mom and her final days on earth. Oh, how she would have loved to see all that has happened! There’s a little pang in my heart every now and again, wishing she was here to experience the wonder and joy.

It’s in her memory that I choose my One Word for 2020: Radiate.

I wrote about this word in my book, sharing a personal story of one friend’s kindness for the woman who gave me life:

I also came across this quote recently which confirmed radiate as my focus word for the new year:

In 2020, I want to radiate warmth and love towards everyone I meet.

I want to radiate acceptance for who you are, as you are.

I want to radiate joy and peace with hope for the days ahead.

I want to radiate kindness with a brightness that permeates the darkness.

I also want to continue my kindness journey by completing 20 acts of kindness and I encourage you to do the same! Imagine if those around you committed to completing 20 acts of kindness this year – how much good we can put in the world!

I created a Google Slides template which you can use for yourself, your students, coworkers, family members, just about anybody! Simply click the link below and select “Use Template” in the top right corner. Then you can add your name to the title slide and edit the text boxes on each slide – one for each act of kindness you complete. You can add photos and images, too!

It would be amazing to see all the ways we can radiate kindness in 2020! If you would like to download the template – CLICK HERE! You can also share the link with others by copying this URL: http://bit.ly/radiate2020template. When completed, I would love for you to share your link here so we can radiate kindness to the world: http://bit.ly/20RAKS2020!

May 2020 bring the greatest joys you’ve yet to experience! Let’s get out there and make it an amazing year!

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Random Acts of Kindness, reflection

Post-it Note Purpose

January 3, 2015 Pollyanna Writer

Today is January 3, which means only one thing: I’m three days into a new year and still motivated to reach the goals I set for 2015. Yay me!

Like many people, I’ve been caught in the trap of making too many goals or hanging hope on abstract wishes that never quite see the light of attainment. Have you found yourself in this place as well? Pull up a chair. Let’s compare stories as we crumple the paper of unfulfilled resolutions and start anew.

By the way, you only get one Post-it note for 2015.

That’s right. One Post-it note. For all your goals. No, you may not cheat with the extra large notepad. If you can’t fit all your goals on a 3×3″ piece of paper, you have too many goals and will get to the end of 2015 feeling like a failure. I say this with complete honesty because I am the queen of list-making. Trust me, less is more.

When you decide which goals make the cut, it’s important to know exactly how you plan to achieve your goals. To simply state “lose weight” means nothing without a concrete action plan to follow through. Will you eat out less? Make healthier choices at restaurants? Cut out junky snacks between meals? Really think through your plan, write it out, then stick your Post-it note somewhere as a visible reminder each day (perhaps your refrigerator or mirror.)

Remember, your goal has to fit on that one Post-it note. A goal and action plan for weight loss is enough to fill up that page! Don’t be a goal-setting overachiever. Be a goal-mastery maker.

Below are my goals for 2015:

1. Write more. I started blogging two and a half years ago with my random acts of kindness blog. Last year I created this blog so I could have a digital space to share other types of writing. In order to complete this goal, my action plan is to write at least two blog posts a month. While I would love to have a grandiose goal of 2 posts a week, I know that’s a bit unrealistic for me to keep everything else in my life balanced.

2. Organize the Chaos. Each month I will complete one organizing task to declutter my life. January’s goal is to declutter my iPhone. That means backing up/deleting holiday and vacation photos. Organizing quote pics in a folder. Clearing out voicemails and call lists. Deleting unused apps and saved sites that are mocking me with every swipe of my finger. Should be a tedious task, but if I do a little each week, then by the end of the month I will be ready to tackle the next organizing project.

3. “Sprinkle kindness like glitter.” This goal is in memory of Renee, a teacher at my school who unexpectedly passed away at the young age of 30. My goal is to complete at least 30 glittery-fun RAKs for her and to blog about them on my Celebrate Kindness blog.

I’m already off to reaching my first goal, just with this blog post! Ahhhh… I already feel good about my goals. So now it’s your turn! Grab a pen and a Post-it note and put those goals into writing. Tweet out a pic and hashtag #2015goals so we can inspire each other!

reflection

New Year, New Blog

December 27, 2014 Pollyanna Writer

Ahhhh… the sweet surrender of winter break. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season has ended as quickly as it began and there is a lethargic sway to my daily tasks. It’s time for renewal, rejuvenation, and for me, a new blog.

Many of you know me best as “that random act of kindness girl” and I want to reassure you that I will continue my RAK blog, posting stories of kindness shared with others.

This blog, however, will focus more on my musings on other interests of mine: education, technology, maybe even a parenting story or two.

I created this digital writing space in June 2014 when I participated in a virtual summer writing camp on Twitter led by Kate Messner, author of the Marty McGuire series. I felt the need to hone my writing skills to support my teachers and students as they began their own personal blogs. The experience of connecting with other writers and authors using the hashtag #teacherswrite was simply AMAZING! For the first time in my adult life, I actually revisited my childhood dream of becoming a published author. The feedback I received on my blog posts stretched me in unexpected ways, from designing a story based solely on dialogue to crafting a plot with unexpected death and destruction.

Not quite what you would expect from a Pollyanna writer.

As I sit here now, wrapped in my cozy fleece blanket with a steaming mug of hot chai latte near my side, I am committing to you this promise: I will blog at least twice a month on this blog, with hopes of increasing that amount as a bonus.

There. I said it. My goal for 2015 is to write more. More places. More often. More topics. More reflection.

More.

People say you are more likely to achieve a goal if you put it in writing and share it with others. Well, I have committed my goal to 2,427 people, just by sharing this post on Twitter and FB (and that’s not even including others who will read this from my post being shared or retweeted!) Wow… I suddenly feel as if I’m standing on a tightrope with all of you underneath. Not watching and waiting for me to plummet stories below; rather, I already feel encouraged by your interest and support.

YOU are my cheerleader. When I feel tired or want to cop out of writing with the overused, “I don’t have enough time” excuse, I will picture your face smiling back at me with a smirk saying, “You make time for things that matter.”

YOU matter. I am writing for a real audience, just like the teachers and students I blog beside daily at school. Because of you, I write. And through this process of blogging you will help me become a better writer, because I now have accountability for my stories. My thoughts. My random musings on life. Go ahead and add this blog to your digital reader and follow me on Twitter @HCPSTinyTech. Grab a cup of joe and let’s get this party started.

What are your goals for 2015? How can I play a part in your support system? Comment below and we can encourage each other as we learn and grow.