45 Before 45: Challenges 41 to 45

This is it, the final day of planning the goals for my next birthday challenge, 45 Before 45. I have been posting five challenges a day, from June 11-19, introducing all 45 goals of the next birthday bucket list.

I have been doing birthday challenges since my 24th birthday. Normally the challenges last for a single year. This one is going to be different by spanning two years, from April 26, 2024 to April 25, 2026 as the 45 Before 45. 

I have also reimaged the individual goals as 45  interest badges, similar to the ones I earned in my Girl Guide days. I explained in the intro blog ten days ago, in the dreaming and list phase of my planning process I noticed many of my ideas were about increasing my participation in areas I value or want to improve in. This was things like ukulele, reading, and journaling. Having a goal of "practice more" or "read more" would not have encouraged or resulted in the desired "more." I also noticed that there are a number of similar goals. One page might have "visit a waterfall" another page "enjoy nature" or "witness something beautiful in nature." My hope is that by replacing the individual tasks with flexible badges I will be encouraging the experience I want my challenge to help me have. 

The badges will have three levels of possible achievement (think bronze, silver, gold). How to achieve each level will depend on the tasks for each goal. For some it will be three smaller goals. For others it could be a list of 10 tasks, each level requiring me to complete a certain amount of tasks. The breakdown could be level 1 needs one, level 2 requires 2, and level 3 requires 3. Or it could be that each requires the completion of three tasks. I am really excited about this change, however it is more complicated than making the list of challenges in previous years. 

The Birthday Challenges 41-45

41) Home

I have moved a lot in my life. Beyond hanging a few posters, photos, and art I have never really made a space mine unless you count my things being in the space. As an adult my first flat was furnished with hand me downs and I still have many of the same items. Since Alex and I got married in 2020 we have lived in three apartments. All have felt like temporary spaces, any personal touches have been in our own decorations. I want to learn my décor style, and decorate a space, make a house a home. And now I have the opportunity. We are moving again in July and are planning to stay for the foreseeable future. We've already talked to the owner about painting and ways to make the space ours, within the restrictions of our rental agreement.

Bronze: Complete one task, Silver: Complete two more tasks, Gold: Complete three more tasks

• Name the home. I love the houses names like Green Gables or the names in Jane Austin books, things like Lucas Lodge, or Rosings Cottage. I would like to have a house with a name. Alex suggested the name Eric, it was not the type of naming what I was thinking.
• Paint at least one room not white
• Try wallpaper
• Paint an accent wall
• Decorate with art and photos that represent us
• Have a gallery wall
• Organize the kitchen, bedroom and craft room in such a way that the spaces are conducive to being used
• Complete a DIY project to improve the home
• Repaint my dresser
• Declutter every room at least once a year 
• Have people over/host a get-together 24 times
• Decorate a board game space with geeky décor
• Install floating book shelves
• Install my makeup and jewelry mirror
• Have a writing space
• Create a reading nook
• Start a small garden
• Build a terrarium
• Keep a plant alive

42) Be Active

Early in January a friend, who has been getting into working out and going to the gym was visiting. He was a part of one of my youth groups and has stayed connected. He challenged me to get more flexible and healthy this year. As part of the conversation he said, "you are important to my life and I would like you be around a long time so please take care of yourself." His words have lingered in my brain. Being healthy is something I want and the actions that would allow for an active life often are pushed aside for the more urgent. I would like to honour my friend's wish by being intentional to care for me. 

I am mixing three concepts in this one challenge, the different task will reflect this. First, the over all health of my physical body. So healthy eating, flexibility, strength and endurance 2) Engaging in activities I enjoy like hiking, canoeing, frisbee that are easier when I am healthy, and 3) the hard things. Activities and challenges I want to try but they take more effort like running a 5km race or climbing the CN Tower, or completing a rock wall course. 

To achieve Bronze: complete any three tasks, Silver: complete four more tasks, Gold: complete five more tasks.

• Try the Finch app for 30 days
• Establish a morning routine that works for me
• Establish an evening routine that works for me
• Add and keep a morning stretching routine
• Walk for 30+ minutes three times a week
• Visit the gym four times in two weeks
• Visit the gym three times a week for a month
• Visit the gym three times a week for three months
• Create a four week flexible meal plan
• Track my what I am eating (not calorie counting) specifically vegetables and fruits
• Increase my daily fruits and vegetables to a minimum of five servings daily 
• Have a section of my adventure bullet journal to track my health goals, weight, and measurements. 
• Change my sleeping habits to wake up by 6 am
• Go hiking 12 times
• Complete an indoor bouldering course
• Complete all the easy bouldering courses
• Be trained on the indoor ropes rock wall
• Be trained on the harder rock wall (in the back)
• Master the harder rock walls
• Learn the hardest, must be successful on the hard wall course to learn, course
• Go ziplining and ropes course
• Try a difficult ropes course
• Increase flexibility by being able to hold ten poses for a minute each
• Walk 10k in a day and not out of service next day
• Climb the stairs of the CN Tower
• Train for and run a 5k race
• If knees allow, train for and run a 10k race
• Go biking with Alex

43) Adventures

One of my hopes of these challenges is to make space to enjoy life and see the world. Adventures are one way I encourage myself live fully. This is another challenge that has had a few different names including explore, travel, and enjoy nature. A bit of each of those are going to be in the possible tasks for this goal. 

To achieve Bronze: five tasks, Silver: complete five more tasks. Gold: complete five more tasks.

• Renew my passport
• Go somewhere I have never been
• Go somewhere I love
• Go somewhere Alex loves
• Leave North America
• Go on a road trip
• Create an epic road trip playlist
• Climb/hike a mountain
• Swim in a lake
• Find a waterfall
• Swim under a waterfall
• Go stargazing
• Hug a red wood tree
• Hunt for frogs (for pictures)
• Visit ducks
• See a moose (from a safe distance)
• Watch the Monarchs take flight
• Visit a butterfly sanctuary
• See the Northern Lights (I missed the recent display)
• Watch a meteor shower
• Skip rocks
• Go backcountry camping
• Camp for a week
• Try a new adventure
• Go indoor sky diving
• Go white water rafting
• Try surfing
• Go spelunking 
• Go trampolining 
• Do something that scares me
• Go on a surprise (Alex planned) unknown adventure
• Have a Sister adventure
• Have a parent's adventure
• Visit a ren faire
• Try a new food
• Try a new activity

44) Be the Good

I know the quote is not, "be the good you want to see it the world," however that one word difference from "change" to "good" is the heart of this challenge. My Bible reading this week included Matthew 25:35 and 40b, "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me...Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these you did it to me." 

I want to be a person who helps, who feeds, who welcomes. I want to notice and care for the marginalized. I make efforts to do this but I am still growing in these areas. I want to make sure I check my motives and how I help. I've seen that not all helping is actually helpful.

I want to be someone who speaks for the voiceless. No, I want to listen to the voiceless and when I can give them a megaphone. I want to care about the needs of people in my city and country and around the world. Looking at this week, June 20th is World Refugee Day and June 21st is National Indigenous Peoples Day. These are not the only areas on my mind but I find my time with God is continually calling to care and learn about these groups. There is a lot of good needed. This also isn't original to me, "I can not be all the good the world needs but the world needs all the good I can do."

To achieve Bronze: complete any three tasks, Silver: complete three more tasks, Gold: complete four more tasks.

• I am going to making praying about this a daily focus. I know there are a lot of memes about "thoughts and prayers" and how prayers don't do anything. Responding that those critics is for another post. I do know, in my life, when I have prayed about something continually, God expands my caring for the person or situation and I become more motived to act. I want to be a person who lives my faith out with actions.
• Read 10 books by authors of different perspectives (Indigenous, Refugee, Immigrant, Black, etc)
• Read 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act
• Find one next step to aid in reconciliation and do it
• Attend a blanket exercise
• Attend a pow wow
• Attend NAIITS
• Read about the reconciliation movements in Rwanda and South Africa
• Learn about all the local food programs in my city and find how to best support or be involved.
• Learn about one other group in my city that supports a marginalized group and how I can support
• Alex and I currently support one child through a sponsorship program. I will send him 20 letters.
• Volunteer in a meaningful way with a organization that is not directly connected to my church (aka volunteer not just because I'm the pastor)
• This space is for an action that I discover that is good I can do
• This space is for an action that I discover that is good I can do
• This space is for an action that I discover that is good I can do

45) Seek Joy

Alex tells me, "I feel my emotions deeply" I do, thankfully he also has told me a number of times that he really loves my childlike heart. I like finding joy in little things and looking for wonders. Sometimes it just happens, but sometimes this requires purposeful searching rather than accidental stumbling. It can be as simple as noticing the small things that fill the day with joy, enjoying a cup tea, lighting candles before a meal, stopping to smell the flowers. It can also be doing the rare, weird, or wild thing like rolling down a hill or running through a sprinkler. 

To achieve Bronze: complete any one task, Silver: complete two more tasks, Gold: complete three more tasks.

• Stop to smell the flowers
• Frolic in the wood
• Walk barefoot in the grass
• Roll down a hill
• Splash in puddles
• Be spontaneous
• Sit by the lake and write
• Make cotton candy
• Blow bubbles
• Make giant bubbles
• Puzzle with Alex (finish six puzzles)
• Find joys in small things
• Savor a drink
• Have a picnic
• Walk along the beach
• Hold a baby animal (lamb, duckling, kitten etc.)

And that is the 45 Before 45. The next steps are:

1. Designing the badge for each challenge
2. Place challenges in their final groups and order
3. Create a PDF Birthday Challenge Adventure Book
4. Introduce all those items in blog form before July, I am aiming for June 25th.