Well, folks, here it is. My 25th birthday. I can officially rent a car without paying ludicrous young drivers fees. Yes, I have a quarter century of life experience under my belt. What that really amounts to is open to interpretation, but as far as I'm concerned, it's enough to have a pretty good idea of what really matters going forward.
With that in mind, I have set out to establish 25 new actionable objectives for my 25th year of life. They are not necessarily goals in the big, milestone sense, but each item on this list will help me to get closer to being the person that I am trying to become.
Like the good little student that had strategic, SMART goal-making pounded into her head for the past four years, I did my best to think about whether each of these was specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. That put some objectives out of contention... for example, endeavoring to look like Kate Upton by my 26th birthday is surely setting myself up to fail-- I'm not likely to gain six vertical inches in one year (or at any point in my life, really). Some things just aren't in the cards for me.
Here is what did make the cut.
1. Follow through.
In short, that means holding myself to everything on this list. It also means living up to justified expectations-- my own and others'. Do what you say you are going to do when you are going to do it. Don't drop the ball. And don't take yourself out of the game because you don't think you're good enough to hit a home run-- simply getting on base is more than enough, and everyone is bound to strike out every once in a while (phew, that was quite a baseball analogy for someone who doesn't even like the sport, eh?)
2. Study scriptures daily.
3. Pay off my credit card.
4. "Settle" somewhere and make new friends.
I don't mean buying a house or becoming a ball and chain (though I'm not opposed to either of those things, I just don't realistically see them happening within the next year). I just mean pick somewhere to start my post-college life and find people to enjoy the down time with. People to knock items off the bucket list with. Maybe even people who can help keep you positive when the inevitable lows try to knock you down. As of right now... the plan is Calgary by September.
5. Be a full tithe payer, and save as much as I tithe.
6. Conduct personal history interviews with my grandparents and great-grandparents.
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| Why yes, this is a four-generation picture. |
7. Volunteer and serve regularly.
Though I already have a good idea of what organizations and causes I would most like to get involved in, it sort of depends on where I go, so forgive me if this lacks specificity. The most important thing here is to be actively engaged in the community that I live in, to live focused on the "we" rather than the "me" and to demonstrate through my actions my commitment to being a good global citizen.
8. Read 25 books from my 10-year reading list.
I think a sub-objective here should be to ensure that Jane Austen's novels are among the 25. Maybe it's just the Mormon circles I've been moving in of late, but it seems that my lack of familiarity with the exploits of one Mr. Darcy or poor, shy Fanny Price leave something wanting. Indeed, my very womanhood might be at stake.
9. Take more pictures.
First my digital camera broke, then my phone camera broke. And here I am in DC with only my pitifully unreliable mind to document the visual experience (well, that and a few photos when I manage to trick friends into coming along on excursions with me). I think my first big purchase once I have a steady job will be a decent camera.
10. Create and design a recipe book including favorite family recipes.
11. Learn how to do my hair.
Thankfully, my super-thin, super-fine, super-straight hair doesn't always look like this. Most of the time, though, it's so flat that if it were boobs, Keira Knightly would be busty by comparison. Zer iz no volume to be had! And when was the last time you saw a smokin' hair style without volume?
12. Talk to mom and dad weekly, grandparents frequently and brothers regularly.
Remember that one time I kept a journal for a whole year? Yah, me neither. I'm incredibly good at telling myself "oh, this is something I'll want to remember later" and terribly bad at actually recording those things in any way, shape, or form. But I have blogged pretty consistently for a week now... progress, right? Now if I can just fulfill number one here then we'll be good to go!
14. Write a letter to catch up with a different old friend every week.
As you might have noticed from a recent blog post, I've had a lot of incredible people in my life at one point or another. It would be a shame to let those relationships fall away completely just because of distance or changed life circumstances.
15. Write more, period.
Now, how can you ignore the Avengers? Stephen King apparently writes 2,000 words a day-- he says a great deal of them never end up being published, but its the constant practice that makes him, well, Stephen King. I could do without the horror and gore (in my own writing that is, many of you know how much I love the genre in my entertainment) but I think that's a pretty strong standard to work towards. Even if it's just 100 words a day, in a year that's 36,500 words closer to a finished novel.
16. Send family members greeting cards ON TIME for all special occasions.
Even when I purchase cards well before the date in question, I have a terrible habit of toting them around in my purse for weeks without sending them... if I ever do. I must crush this habit. I also must be better about sending Thank You cards.
17. Replace my passport, birth certificate and social insurance card.
Because having a valid passport is the first step to actually being able to fill one. The first step to being able to renew my passport is being able to prove my identity... the documents for which were lost when my wallet was stolen three years ago. Time, money, and geographical location have prevented me from taking care of it before now, but since I'm 25 it's probably time to pull on my big girl pants and get my life in order. Who knows when having those things on hand might come in handy (cough, like legally changing one's surname, for example, which leads me to...)
18. Go on more dates than I did last year.
19. Plant and maintain a garden.
I am the furthest thing from a green thumb that you will ever come across. I have killed every house plant I've ever owned, but I am determined to become one with mother nature (er, sort of). I mean, if a girl daydreams about a country life on a ranch she probably ought to be able to turn a few vegetables in her own garden. That's my goal this year-- even if it's just a few square feet in the ground or boxes on the patio.
20. Maintain a high priority for temple attendance.
For almost two years now I've had the blessing of being able to attend not just one, but many of the gorgeous temples throughout Utah and the many places I have traveled (Washington, DC was my 21st temple!) If I do end up in Calgary, I will again be blessed to have a temple close enough by that temple attendance will not be a great burden to me financially, or in travel time. I know from experience, though, that just because a temple is nearby doesn't mean that it doesn't require some sacrifices to fit regular attendance into your schedule. Like Elder Brad Foster said a couple years ago, "A distraction doesn't have to be evil to be effective."
21. Carry out at least 25 Random Acts of Kindness.
Love begets love, and sometimes the greatest influence can be had through the smallest of actions. Will I actually be keeping tabs on how many random acts of kindness I engage in? Absolutely not! This is on here to remind me to pray continually to find and recognize opportunities to serve, and to answer the call when it comes in.
22. Prepare and send a Christmas letter.
Every year I tell myself that I will send out cards to my friends and relatives, now scattered throughout the far reaches of Canada, America, and most of the rest of the world, too. Every year I tell myself I have plenty of time to draft a letter and track down addresses and every year the Christmas season hits much more quickly than anticipated.
23. Take a dance class.
So I'll never be a contender on So You Think You Can Dance... It would just sure be nice to not look like a total buffoon on the dance floor!
24. Start actually learning Portuguese!
I've got a few phrases under my belt thanks to my time spent with my Brazilian friends. Things like "Eu quero ficar com voce" only get you so far though (although, from what I'm given to understand, that particular sentence could get you quite a ways, if you know what I mean).
25. Work each day to love myself more.
The amount of love I have to truly give other people is directly proportional to how I feel about myself. You cannot give what you don't have. Work on it.
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