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| Image: My solved Wordle grid |
How’s your Wordle game?
I wouldn’t say I’m addicted to Wordle, but I enjoy it now and then. What’s not to enjoy? Wordle is free, doesn’t take much time, and (for most literary writer-types anyway) is not too terribly difficult. If you don’t guess the five letter word of the day, you don’t even have to admit it to anyone else. But when you DO get it, you get a little burst of satisfaction nudging you toward a positive mindset. It gives you the confidence to think that if you can complete one minor challenge, maybe you can do the next thing. I call that a "Small Achievable Win."
I believe after surviving two years of COVID-19, we all need a small daily win to boost our self-esteem. The problems we face are so big, so vast, so irritating, so depressing. Some mornings, I just don’t even want to get started navigating through a world of uncertain health policies, kids sick of school, friends contracting COVID-19, book banning, etc, etc.
So, I have another trick to give myself a Small Achievable Win. One which addresses the enormous problems, too. I call Congress.
When everything else in my day is spinning out of control, I find it empowering to make a quick phone call to Congress. I can hang up the phone after leaving my ten-second message and think, “There. I did that. I helped.” Other things might still go wrong, but after I’ve made that call, no one can take the feeling away from me!
If you've never called a senator or representative before, my Advocacy Made Easy blog about phone calls can walk you through it. If you would like some talking points on a variety of issues (global nutrition, U.S. housing, low-income tax credits, COVID-19 vaccine access, etc), you can visit this helpful action site from RESULTS.
So, when the day comes that Wordle is eventually tucked away behind a paywall at the New York Times (it's still free as of this writing), consider that you always have completely free, daily access to another Small Achievable Win. Pick up your phone, call, and feel great about yourself!
P.S. Calling Congress might actually be easier than solving this particular Wordle! Go home, Wordle. You're drunk.
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| Image: A solved Wordle grid with the answer "BOOZY" |
