Word of the Year

I've never been a fan of New Years Resolutions for myself.  I usually can't follow through with them, and then I feel like I failed.  

One of the Weight Watchers Ambassadors that I follow: Beautifully Broken Journey likes to choose a word to focus on for the year.  I have another friend that does the same, so I thought I would do it as well.  My word this year is......

 STRONGER

Physically 

Now that I am at a weight that I'm comfortable with, I want to work on getting stronger. I signed up for a half marathon. I feel like mentally I am there, I just need to work on the physical part.  I don't want to look super muscular. My focus will be on toning and defining.  I need to strengthen my legs to train for the half marathon.  Also, the hard part of weight loss is maintenance.  It was take will-power and strength to keep it off. 

Spiritually

This year my focus is to be strong in the Lord.  I want to spend more time in the Word, prayer, and daily reflection.  I'm hoping I can do more of that when I go on my runs.  It is a time for me to get away from distractions and spend time with God.  United Methodist Women have a reading list and a goal of reading 5 books in a year.  I did it two years ago, and I slacked off this past year.  It is time to get back on track.   

Mentally & Emotionally

This summer, I plan to take another online grad class for education.  It isn't towards a masters degree, but I do enjoy studying and sharpening my brain.

From my experience through Dressember, I also plan to research and study more about human trafficking and fair labor across the globe.  

I want to work on perspective thinking this year, too. When in a negative situation, I look at some positives - not let one or two bad things ruin my whole day.  When I am negatively impacted by another person, I want to look through their eyes and see why they said/behaved the way they did. 

I know some of these are lofty, and I may not be able to reach each one of these goals, but I hope by December 31st, 2018.   I can say I'm a little 

STRONGER!

Reflections on Dressember

Today I woke up with the thoughts of putting on a pair of pants. (I may be wearing dresses more often now, as I realized the great feeling of not having my waist line restricted. ;-) )  I wanted to take some time to share with you about my experience in participating in Dressember.

Last year, I had a friend post about participating in Dressember. I followed her posts and read them with intent, but I didn't participate. I followed the Facebook page, and when they posted about the start of the movement again, I knew in my heart I should participate. It was so much more than a dress. I felt all of these: humbled, sadness, happiness, empowered, anger, enlightened, strength, determined, prayerful, and most of all-changed.

Some Things I've learned since participating in Dressember.

Statistics

1. More than 30 million people are enslaved worldwide.

2. Human trafficking generates about 150 billion a year.

3. About 2 million children are exploited in the global commercial sex trade.

4. The most recent study from the International Labor Organization in September 2017 found that women account for 99% of victims in the commercial sex industry and 58% in other forms of slavery.

5. Every 30 seconds, somewhere in the world, a child is trafficked.


How to Recognize the Signs of Human Trafficking

https://polarisproject.org/human-trafficking/recognize-signs


Areas Dressember Supports

1. Rescuing Victims
Our partners work closely with law enforcement to identify, protect, and free people who have been forced into the commercial sex trade.They also work to train law enforcement, hospital staff, and transportation authorities to identify conspicuous signs of slavery.

2. SERVING JUSTICE
We facilitate collaborative work with legal authorities to build strong cases against traffickers, pimps, and criminals, and ensure that all victims are well represented in court.

3. RESTORING LIVES
We know that every survivor deserves unique, individual treatment. Survivors are provided with access to housing, medical treatment, as well as individualized trauma counseling, vocational opportunities, and education.


Ways to Educate Ourselves

a blogpost on some good podcasts to listen to: http://www.dressember.org/blog/podcasts

an app to use to check out companies: Good on You https://goodonyou.eco/app/

http://www.dressember.org/blog/childlabor


Ethical Shopping Choices
http://www.dressember.org/blog/mensethicalguide

http://www.dressember.org/blog/holidaygiftguide


http://www.dressember.org/blog/stockingstufferguide


http://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/fair-trade-clothing


This is not an exhaustive list for sure, as I didn't want to overwhelm you with too much information. My goal is just inform you a little more, and how we can stand up for human rights. This doesn't end for me, as I will continue to learn more of what I can do.