Mostly Ameliorated

There was an idea circulating around my Facebook.An idea of part silliness, part self help, part inspiration, part community togetherness...one of those warm and comfortable ideas which comes around at this time of year.The idea of finding a one word to focus on for 2015.I thought about what this might mean to me.As I read some of my friend's reviews and some of the other lovely participants ideas and words, it seemed to me that 2014 had kicked a lot of butt!!! I mean, seriously! Not a lot of people are reflecting on 2014 with happiness and satisfaction.And still we all carry on, trudging along in the muck of life, our Dunkirk spirits, our chins held high; we are all hoping for something a little better, a little softer, maybe a little kinder from 2015.There were some wonderful words settled on. Words like, "trust" "grace" "release" "light", but I kept coming back to AMELIORATE.I like that word.Make a little better each time. That's what I would like for 2015. Small increments of improvement in my whole life. Not a massive MUST CHANGE EVERYTHING rush (which, for me, always leads to disappointment and self berating for not being perfect and achieving that change), just a gentle, imperfect, and perfectly wonderful amelioration.So, this morning I picked up a page of the 100 yr old Chopin. A page which has been torn twice and taped together. Probably a difficult page to master if it was so well gone over. Such is life I thought. Somewhat difficult to master, yet we keep going over it again and again.I sketched my free spirit. I sketched flowers and swallows. I sketched mountains and fields.A perfectly imperfect little sketch, possibly the beginnings of a future painting.So here we go, small changes for the better, like substituting a buttery croissant for my morning toast, I plan on having a mostly ameliorated year. :D