Power, gratitude, love, breakthrough.
Those were my “first to pop out at you” words on one of those circulating memes on social media. Usually, I manage to find words like “sham” or “fark” but I did let my little eye drift out of focus for a bit until I found the “four words that will define my 2022.”
Remember those Magic Eye “3D” pictures that were ubiquitous in the 90s? There were mall kiosks full of them, shoppers milling like zombies while trying to teach their eyes to stare blankly through the image, which was often something wildly colorful and outer-spacey, like a creation you’d take home from those spinning paint splatter wheels at the county fair. I remember many people said they could never get the image, and the headache-inducing method of eye strain is probably why they went out of fashion pretty quickly.
Before the iPhone, these 3D images were our bathroom entertainment, or books of them were spread on the coffee table. Once you found the hidden, spookily floating image within, it became easier and easier to find the same one again. On my bathroom wall as a teen, I had a poster of one: a white background with simple red hearts spaced along it. When I crossed my eyes and looked “though” the picture, I could see a bulbous, floating heart-shaped balloon. It became a ritual in the mornings; I wasn’t ready for my immaculately-styled day until I had seen the balloon.
These days, while we (thankfully) aren’t risking an irreversible eye twitch, we are still greeted with a bombardment of images, memes, videos, and wishlist items at our fingertips. I commonly see the mishmashes of words like these that will “define your life” if you can only see them.
Power, gratitude, love, breakthrough. Inspiring enough. Let’s examine.
GRATITUDE. Obvi. It’s been my numero-uno priority and message for many years now. It matters, it makes a difference, and - like those Magic Eye posters once were - it’s omnipresent. Done.
POWER. A word that makes me uncomfortable. It’s hard not to associate power with greed and the desire for control. I’m choosing to focus on the power that is within me - to see the good, to be a friend, to mother with fierce love.
LOVE. See Gratitude.
BREAKTHROUGH. An exciting one! And one that has eighty million chances to manifest and/or be interpreted. I am going to allow this one; I’m not going to strive for it.
What words jump out at you? What fun can you have with them?
{And if you're suddenly jonesing for some nostalgic eye-crossing, it turns out you can still try out the Magic Eye online!}
Power Gratitude Love Breakthrough