One Hundred First Wordle Words (and Other Small Joys)

Welcome to So Many Thoughts, a semi-weekly newsletter about royal style and the other parts of life I want to think through with you. You can subscribe here and follow me on Instagram at @EHolmes.

Happy Tuesday, friends. This story about moms screaming really struck a nerve. The pandemic is raging, mercury is in retrograde, and the Santa Ana winds are blowing here in Southern California. The strong, dry gusts that blow westward towards the coast have caught me off guard during our first winter in Los Angeles. I’ve had to adjust to the howling, which can be unsettling.

My sliver of a solution to the stress is to look for fleeting moments of joy. A full day of sustained happiness (or even just a few hours, tbh!) is an unrealistic goal for our family at the moment. Someone always screeches. But quick hits of happiness abound. The challenge for me is twofold: to recognize the joy as it is happening and then appreciate it exactly for what it is, rather than wish for more or be sad when it passes. I am learning to embrace these moments as quickly as they come and go.

Take yesterday evening at the playground, when Bird’s hair caught my eye. I noticed the tight pigtails I combed into her hair before preschool had become loose and uneven. She looked delightfully disheveled after a full day of play. I smiled at the reminder that my girl lives life at full blast.

These moments of joy are also tucked into the chores that come with parenthood. Matt and I spend more time than I care to admit cleaning up every night after bedtime. He does the dishes while I scurry around, wiping, sweeping, folding, tidying. Do I love it? No. In fact, I often resent it. But in my best moments, I find glimpses of goodness in the remnants of my kids’ days. My heart swells at the chapter books Fitzgerald, our enthusiastic reader, leaves face down and splayed open so as to remember the page.

And I teared up the other evening when I crouched down to clean up the tiny furniture from Bird’s dollhouse. Oliver had put two of his firetrucks and a race car to sleep in each one of the beds, their front wheels on the pillows. When I asked him about it the next morning, he said, “They were so tired, Mom.” Oh, buddy. Same.

One moment of joy I find myself looking forward to every day: Wordle. Credit goes to Matt for this one, he introduced me to this perfect brain game. More on why I love it and your incredible list of first words, below. Plus, five links for you.

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One Hundred First Wordle Words (and Why This Game is My New Fave)

If you have not hopped aboard the Wordle train, consider this your invitation! This simple word game has taken over my social media feeds and brought me so much joy each day.

The premise of Wordle is simple: You have six tries to guess a five-letter word. Each guess yields a clue to the letters of the final word. If, after your first guess, a letter is turned gray that means it is not in the final word at all; yellow means the letter is in the final word but in a different spot; green means that letter is in that spot in the final word.

At the end, Wordle gives you an emoji-fied version of your game that strips out the letters, allowing you to share — but not spoil — it (hence all the green and yellow squares you see on Facebook and Twitter).

I would argue the beauty of Wordle is its simplicity. It lives on a website, not an app, and there is only one word per day. So if you find it as addicting as I do, Wordle can only suck up so much of your time. <Chef’s kiss> I like to make it last as long as I can (what can I say, I’m a savor-er). I guess a word and then switch browser tabs, taking a bit of time to percolate on the possibilities.

To start the game, you simply pick a five-letter word. There is a hot debate among Wordle-rs (is that a word?) about the best “first” word to use. I am from the group that brings big Wheel of Fortune “RSTLNE” energy to the game, preferring a word filled with common letters. I gravitate towards HEART, Matt uses ADIEU. Others I’ve talked to switch it up, based on their mood or the previous day’s puzzle.

I asked on Instagram what first Wordle words you all use and — wow, what a list! I’ve compiled 100 first words here in alphabetical order. I formatted it so you can screenshot it on your phone and save it for easy access. If you prefer it in text form, I’ll add it to the comments of this post on my Bulletin page.

What first Wordle first words did I miss? What Wordle strategies do you have? Please hit “Join the discussion” at the bottom of this email and share in the comments.

PS: Don’t miss these Wordle write-ups in the New Yorker, NPR, and the New York Times.

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Five Things To Check Out This Week

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That’s it from me, friends. I’ll see you back in your inboxes on Friday. Happy Wordle-ing.

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