Word

There’s a great scene in the movie Southside With You (at 1:46) about Barack and Michelle Obama’s courtship where Barack Obama addresses a group of community members at a local meeting. They’ve been told “no” about something or other, and Obama suggests that rather than take the word at face value, they flip it around into something positive – like “on, as in “carry on.”

As this year winds down, I’ve been thinking quite a bit about words myself to choose a word of intention for 2019 that will effectively serve as my theme for the year. In my own case, I chose the word “GO” because since my husband’s death, I’ve stagnated – stuck with the familiar and same old stuff but lacked the energy or enthusiasm for new challenges that I previously pursued. Next year, I intend to GO and charge forward on new paths both within the law, my practice and outside. That’s the idea anyway.

In thinking about a word for myself, words with dual meanings kept coming to mind. For example, the word “bound.” Bound can mean stuck or tied to something but it can also mean to move forward in huge steps – growing by leaps and bounds, or bounding to the future. Latch also has dual meanings – either to lock or block entry (as in latch the door) – but also, to latch on to a new idea or concept so that it really sticks.

I’m sure there are other words that also have double meanings depending upon context (share your ideas in the comments). But the question for solos and smalls is what can you flip around next years to go from a negative or average year to one that knocks your socks off?