Word for 2012?

Here's my final finish for 2011! I spent my time off completing this Buttermilk Basin design that I started at the Primitives of the Midwest workshop in June. That's the last of my Christmas crafting even though the decorations are still up here!

Have you made New Year's resolutions or do you have a "word of the year"? I've thought about this a lot this week and the word I landed on for me for 2012 is "margin", as in managing my time to cut down on the busyness and leave time to pursue the things that are meaningful and rejuvenating. I have a natural tendency to busyness. I can easily fill my days with tasks and leave little room for down time to dream or pursue other interests. The things that fill my days might be good things or even very good things, but my goal is to reach a balance between the pull of work and things that refuel my tank and give me energy.

Last year we spent time in Amish country in Indiana. I admire many things about the Amish but the thing that really impressed me was that they may embrace modern technology, but they do it in a way that fits with their culture and values. Did you know that some Amish use cell phones? Some of the men own cell phones for business purposes, but they only turn them on in the morning and evening to get their messages and return calls; the rest of the day the phones are off. This allows them to focus on their work or whoever they're with instead of dealing with the usual interruptions that come with cell phone ownership. So they have the convenience of technology on their own terms--it doesn't control them.

Sometimes my life is so full of obligations that I'm controlled by my to-do list. You've heard the old saying "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy"? Too much focus on being productive probably makes me boring and crabby!  So my goal for 2012 is to really look at how I spend my time and avoid the tendency to over schedule and give myself permission to relax. Thanks for bearing with me on this looong post. I'd love to hear what word you'd choose for yourself for 2012.