Day 15: Treasure Hunt
A (word + photo) search for the spirit of the season
Welcome to Day 15 of the Outsourced Optimism Digital Advent Calendar. Click here to learn more about this small seasonal series and to unwrap all the gifts in the archives.
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If you donāt already know this about me, interactive experiments and experiences designed for connection are kind of my thing. Wellā¦one of my things. Definitely a thruline of my many things (I donāt call myself a Creative Multitude for nothing š).
A few months ago, I hosted Look For The Light, my first word search + photo scavenger hunt. A playful, self-guided game that sent us searching for words and then hunting for them out in the world. And, as we looked high and low and around and under, we captured proof of light in unexpected places, in all its many shapes and unlikely forms.
I had so much fun and, from what I heard (and saw), a lot of you did, too.
So, today, weāre going to do it again!
STEP ONE: SEARCH FOR YOUR WORD(S)
There are 12 wintery, lightly festive words hidden in this word searchā horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. Some are more conceptual while others are quite literal.
If you want a single word to hunt for, go with the first word that you find (or the first word that finds you). If you want a full scavenger hunt list, see if you can find all 12. Below are downloadable files, including a version with a key in case you want to know what words to look for.
Download the Word Search with a key
Download the Word Search answers
STEP TWO: LOOK FOR YOUR WORD(S) IN THE WILD
Pick a day or play all weekend, but wherever you go, keep your eyes open and your photo-taking device handy. See if you can find your word (or words) out in the world or wherever you are. Get as interpretive or as literal as you like. Prepare to be surprised and delighted!
STEP THREE: SHARE (optional, but recommended for a more fun experience)
To enjoy this in a collective wayā invite a friend or family member to play along.
To enjoy this in a more connected wayā share your photo treasures with your fellow Optimists on Notes (tag
) or on Instagram (tag@tamicarey).
P.S. Speaking of wordsā¦.
Do you have a guiding word for the season?
Did you choose a word for 2023? What about 2024?
Love these - thank you, Tami! Also, my word for 2023 was Expand.
what fun!! i've done this with picking a color and photographing everything i see with that color in one day. really heightens your sense of awareness and causes you to take a moment to see what is around you! can't wait to do the word search.