List #20: 30 Words I Love
30 Lists of 30 to Celebrate my 30th Birthday
The What & Why Behind This Project:
This year I turn 30. And my gosh, I have been thinking about it a lot. I don’t know if it’s the pandemic, or the fact that this milestone is loaded with many societal expectations, but my mind has inundated me with reflections and memories from the past, with questions arising about my life choices and lesson learnt, about my expectations of being a human and about my desires for the future. And this combined with pandemic reflections has meant there has been a lot on my mind….🤔
I started writing a series of questions and lists of all the elements I wanted to capture and articulate. There were a lot, unsurprisingly; 30 years is a long time really! So I gave up on the 1 list idea that I normally write (30 reflections/lessons turning 30) and decided to write 30 lists.
30 Lists of 30, for my 30th Birthday.
Who are these lists for, you might wonder? I started writing reflections many years ago to get to know myself better. And when I shared these raw and real accounts with friends I discovered that what I wrote about my individual journey, touched upon something universally human. Beyond the masks and labels we wear is a messy, beautifully complex life, with highs and lows. And more similar to others than we might think.
So I share them in the hope that you too might feel something — intrigue, joy, resonance or maybe even difference — as you reflect on what it means to be a human. I recognise that my experiences are my own, that some come from a place of privilege and that they may not all be relatable or interesting to you. I know I can’t please everyone, so take what you can…(and let me know what lands!).
So, Back to Lists…
The Why Behind List #20: 30 Words I Love
There is something beautiful about how language can convey with precise meanings an idea, a feeling, a human experience that feels something unclear or hard to pin down. I love words, some more than others, and some just because they sound beautiful when spoken.
List #20: 30 Words I Love
- Shirinyoku — ‘Forest Bathing’ in Japanese — something I like to do every day in my local park. Being surrounded by trees and nature is great for our wellbeing. (Related, I also like ‘Komorebi’ which is the filtering of light through the trees, lighting up the forest floor.)
- Serendipity — making desirable discoveries almost by accident, which feels so delightful! I feel like my life is full of this.
- Wabi-Sabi — the beauty that lies in imperfections (Japanese).
- Furasato — The feeling of home, where our hearts long for, but not necessarily our hometown (Japanese)
- Tsundoku — the people who collect piles of books that they don’t always read but hoard. Yep, that is me, although I do read many(just not cover to cover)! (Japanese)
- Mono no aware — the bittersweet awareness of that touches us emotionally, often related to its impermanence. Like beautiful autumn leaves as they are about to fall.
- Sonder — the realisation that another has a life as complex and vivid as your own.
- Alchemy — a magical process of transformation. I love this concept related to human growth and potential especially.
- Ineffable — something too great or difficult to be described. Although wonderful ways to transmit meaning, words do fail us sometimes.
- Enouement — the feeling of doing something or arriving in the future (e.g. an achievement or milestone) and not being able to tell your past self. Except you sort if can in visualisations.
- Kenopsia —a place that is usually bustling with people now abandoned and quiet. This happened a lot with COVID and transformed how places felt.
- Euphoria —intense excitement. I love both the concept of this and also how it sounds.
- Jouska — a hypothetical conversation you repetitively play out in your head (e.g. a comeback we could have said — we have all been there)
- Chrysalism — tranquility being outdoors when there is a storm outside. I have had this feeling for years and it wasn’t until this year that I discovered this word.
- Ellipsism — the sadness of not knowing how history will turn out. There is a strong part of me that is curious about what happens in the future.
- Exulansis — giving up sharing an experience because few can relate to it. I used to experience this a lot.
- Onism — the awareness of how much of the world you will actually experience. The idea that when we choose one path we lose the possibility of doing something else. I struggle with this often as I am curious to know what it is like to experience it all.
- Angst —a prevailing sense of deep anxiety. Often existential, at least for me, when it arises.
- Epiphany — a sudden life changing realisation. Feels so wonderful when it happens.
- Abundance — a plentiful or over sufficient amount. I like the concept of this word deeply and how believing in this mindset can shift our reality.
- Nemesis — something or one hard to defeat. I love thinking about what the nemesis is in my life when thinking about things that are blocking me.
- Grace — beauty and ease of movement. Grace looks so beautiful, you know it when you see it and yet it is hard to define (I had a long conversation lasting almost an hour trying to pin it down!).
- Bodacious — something is that remarkable, attractive, bold or gutsy. I didn’t know this word existed until I received this on the feedback from for one of the early Trigger events. I love the ‘odacious/audacious’ sound in the word.
- Paradox — a statement that is seemingly contradictory. I love how conflicting ideas can coexist at once and leave us in a state of slight confusion or desiring of clarity.
- Ephemeral — something that is transient, not long lasting. I love how this connects to impermanence and can lead to a sense of sadness in the beauty that is momentary.
- Enigma — something mysterious or difficult to understand. I love it when people are like this as you discover layers of complexity in people’s personality.
- Curiosity — a strong desire to learn or know something. Most definitely the thing that drives me to experience all parts of life.
- And — a way to introduce an additional comment. Often seen a a mundane word, the idea of it feel much bolder. Especially when we realise that internal and external conflict can be reduced when we allow multiple things/ ideas/ experiences to coexist.
- Eclectic — ideas, or styles from a diverse range of sources. As a seeker of novelty and interdisciplinarity, this word appeals a lot!
- Kabina — a word that is pleasant to hear (Japanese). Perfect for this list!
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Want To Read More Lists?
I’m publishing one list every day in August (and will add the hyperlinks below).
- 30 Reasons Why I’m Writing 30 Lists of 30
- 30 Questions I’m Living Right Now
- 30 Ways To Have An Awesome Conversation
- 30 Risks I Took & What I Learnt
- 30 Ways to Create and Cultivate Community
- 30 Questions I Reflect on Every Saturday Morning
- 30 Essential Items I Pack Backpacking
- 30 Skills We Need But Don’t Teach
- 30 Things I Wasn’t That Grateful For But Am Now
- 30 Reflective Questions that Lead to Fascinating Conversations
- 30 Signs I am Most Definitely an Adult
- 30 Beliefs I Changed about Myself & Life
- 30 Games I’m Playing in Life
- 30 Confusing Messages I’ve Internalised About Who To Be & How to Live
- 30 Ways I’m Totally Imperfect
- 30 Considerations for Designing Meaningful Human Connection Experiences
- 30 Mundane Experiences That Can Actually Be Quite Magical
- 30 Words To Describe Elements of My Pandemic Experience
- 30 Things I’ve Learnt About Human Behaviour That Show Up Everywhere
- 30 Words I Love
- 30 Parts of Me
- 30 Principles I Live By
- 30 Lessons from 5 Years of Entrepreneurship and Creating
- 30 Health, Productivity, Creativity and Happiness Optimisation Experiments I’ve Explored And The Life Hacks that Resulted From Them
- 30 Things I am Proud of (Achieving) Before 30
- 30 Experiences (& Goals) For the Next 10-ish Years
- 30 Things I Need To Let Go As I Move Forward Into The Next Chapter
- 30 Journal Entries from the Last 20 Years
- 30 Lists That Didn’t Make it to the 30 Lists
- 30 Reflections Writing 30 Lists of 30
Follow me on Medium to read them.
Still Curious?!
💬 Watch my TEDx talk: Talking to Strangers: Having a Meaningful Conversation
📖 Read about some of my work recently published in Entrepreneur.com How to Become a Master at Talking to Strangers
✍️ Stay connected through Conversations With Georgie: The Home of My Thoughts as a Life-Long Learner. Curious. Deep. Exploratory. Real and Raw.
📧 Contact Me: Georgie@Triggerconversations.co.uk
