The Six Sisters

Characters. Sometimes they just show up on the scene and you have to step aside and watch them dance.

We had no idea Emily had so many half-sisters. She met them recently. We did too.

1. Jilaya is the youngest. She wishes she was a vampire. She's working on it. Don't sit too close or she may try to bite you.
2. Lilyth says she can manipulate the weather. If you doubt her, even in your thoughts, some sort of storm is sure to descend. That's her proof.
3. Casdeya. She's a poison master. Watch out if you see her mixing anything.
4. Mara is the teller of dark stories, the cause of nightmares. Beware.
5. Her twin, Nimu, is the prettiest one. If you wrong her, she will steal your lover.
6. Jezebeth. She can twist the truth like no other. She's passed every lie-detector test she's ever taken. 

Can't wait for you to meet them...

#oneword2021

 

Happy 2021 friends! Can you believe we survived 2020!?! We really did. Let that soak in a moment, will ya?

As you know, we open each year with the #oneword campaign. Looking back at previous years' words, and the runners-up, it's clear how great a guide these words have been for me. A beacon to help me create some goals and then, over the year, find a way to see them flourish. I hope that you have scribbled down your #oneword over the years and can glance back with a similar sense of perspective. And if not, there's always a new year. This NEW YEAR. Perhaps give it a try.

So there were quite a few words in the running for 2021, but most of them didn't quite capture the need for endurance and the acceptance of the unknown that no doubt 2021 requires.

Then the word DREAMS came to me one night in a...(I know, corny) dream. And that was just the right kind of thought I could get behind. Because when you don't know what's in store, when you don't have a lot of control over things, the environment is just right for DREAMING! And for me, I'm dreaming of a book deal, a new WIP, a vaccine, followed by a TRIP on a plane, and all the HUGS with friends and family to make the pain and loss of 2020 disappear. DREAMS can be whatever you make them, but when you let them lead you, great hope can be found there. And I am hopeful for 2021.

At the end of 2021, my dream is to look back on the year and at all the ways that I worked hard, the ways that I brought love to the world, and the ways that I showed grace. Those actions are within my power, after all. Even in a volatile year. 

So if resolutions have a tendency to overwhelm you, if you find it too easy to fall victim of the "be-more, do-more" hellscape so common this time of year, consider #oneword as a healthier option. What do you think? How will 2021 shape you?

It is the best of times friends. Take it, shape it, DREAM it, and have a blessed and bountiful new year.

{J}

By the way, if you want to make a cool word cloud to inspire you, check out this site. It's free and so so fun!