My Personal Fiat: A Word for 2026.
Well, I missed my own deadline for writing this post and for choosing my word for 2026. Holidays, family visits, pregnancy, and playing games with my kids took over.
But, I think it turns out that’s all actually super appropriate, given the word I’ve chosen.
I went round and round, thinking about words like abide, trust, alignment, surrender, rest, and several others, but ultimately I went with one that I felt captures the essence of all those combined.
It’s a word that can sometimes mean the total opposite of the way I’ve chosen here, but I’m going with the definition that brings meaning and purpose to my next 365 days.
Fiat. (n). Latin.
1. “Let it be done.” 2. An attitude of faith, humility, trust, and love, not just a phrase, representing a life lived in cooperation with God.
There’s a lot happening in my life (and not to mention the world) right now that I’ve got no control over, and lots of unknowns to face in 2026. A new baby to welcome, the beginning of a homeschool journey, a business that somehow needs to fit into the balance of it all, financial strains, neighbors in need, a country without a soul in the final stages of its empire…
And all I can keep coming back to is the comfort of a personal fiat- the deep sense (under all the stress, sleepless nights, and constant hum of anxiety, of course) that with every step I take, every small yes I say to each of those next steps, is leading me down a path that is truly for me.
A path filled with goodness and grace, and blessings. A path that allows me to serve others as it serves a plan bigger than my own.
Even if it doesn’t always look so clean, easy, or pretty. Even if it doesn’t align with my plan, my ideas, or my sense of what should be happening.
Even if it means temporarily dropping some things off my plate that feel important, urgent, or necessary to me.
So as I head into 2026, I’m keeping it simple.
If a choice I need to make sits in alignment with the radical love of God, then I’ll say yes.
If I don’t know the answer, I will be still until the answer becomes clear.
I know I won’t see most of the steps further ahead and down these paths. But I’m leaning into a deeper trust that all I need is to know one step: the next step.
And then the next after that will be revealed when the time comes.
Let it be done.
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I'm Chiara, owner and operator of Love and Excellence LLC. As the brainchild of a teacher turned stay-at-home mom, Love and Excellence is dedicated to creating and sharing high-quality learning resources for infants, toddlers, and school-aged children.
Every resource is designed with careful consideration of developmentally appropriate practices, culturally responsive pedagogy, and student engagement as the top priorities. With a B.A. in General & Special Education and a M.Ed in Early Childhood Curriculum & Instruction, I bring a wealth of experience using the best inclusive practices to every resource I create.
