2014 - be brave with words

'I've never been so certain and uncertain of anything all at the same time' is what I wrote some time in 2013. I saved it in a draft, because while I didn't want to say it out loud back then, all the same - I wanted to remember it.

It's a funny feeling being so sure about something - that it is all going to turn out right. It's like you can see yourself in a few years time, looking back at these days with a wry smile. Like I told you so. 

I'm not really used to that - but it's liberating in a strange way, that unexpected confidence and surety. And while things start to feel settled, its again not for long. That certainty is quickly displaced, but I guess that's life isn't it? External factors, right place at the right time and the converse of that. Etc, etc.

While I'm a big believer that everything happens for a reason, I'm not sure if we foster the best environment in terms of honesty and taking chances. Sometimes people are too worried about what others might think when they share an honest thought or words. But I'll tell you a secret…some of my most memorable interactions from the year just gone were the unexpected words - people putting themselves out there, sharing thoughts and feelings both big and small. And some of those people are reading this now, and they need to know that I cherished those words and I think that sort of honesty is (and that you are) amazing. 

So with that, I declare in 2014 we should all be brave with words. Because without words, there is nothing.