Brave

I've never really been a brave person. Sure I've survived through difficult situations, but at the end of the day I will always choose the route that requires the least amount of conflict. I choose not to be a bother to someone else, even when I'm encouraged to feel that I am not a bother. I have ideas that I fear executing because I don't want to be judged by others. I also worry that I will not live up to my own expectations.

These issues are admittedly crippling. It's also behavior that I must discourage myself from exhibiting in front of Noah because I want him to believe in himself and his dreams.

So in my effort to break free, I decided to create my own Mighty Life List so I can begin to work on myself. In order to complete a lot of these things on my list I have to be brave. While I am relishing the thought of experiencing and learning the things on my list, I have an ultimate goal. I want to be able to love myself unconditionally.

While I understand that creating this list is just the first step, I am looking forward to crossing items off the list, and will keep track of it. I believe that all of these bullet points are achievable, and will contribute to my quest of fulfillment. 

• take 500 pictures with a digital SLR
• write daily for 1 month straight
• take George and Noah to Israel
• make a hand-blown glass mug
• visit all 50 states
• bake 100 new things
• all girls road trip
• wine in Napa
• start a pottery business
• create the family recipe book
• go on that honeymoon with George
• do 100 over-the-top things for other people
• master an ancient technique
• finish remodeling and re-decorating the house
• take a trip to the rainforest
• make a quilt from the baby clothes
• be able to donate a large sum to a worthy cause
• be financially comfortable
• run a marathon
• plan a retreat
• go on a full-day hiking adventure
• take a cooking class in France
• be comfortable with myself when I dance
• wear a bikini to the beach
• create a photo book of the sunrise and sunset
• spend a week without a car
• speak Hebrew fluently again
• write a novel
• find a female mentor
• introduce Noah to good seafood
• throw a party for a huge celebration
• have another child
• write a letter to my English teacher
• take a creative writing class
• maintain a vegetable garden for a full summer
• help build a home
• spend a week in a cottage on the beach
• quit this career
• read a book under a lilac tree
• pick 50 different fruits with Noah
• practice yoga
• give a heartfelt toast at a wedding
• paint something I would want to hang on my wall
• go fishing for the first time
• make my own journal (learn bookbinding)
• regularly recycle
• learn how to cartwheel
• plant a tree
• draw a portrait of Noah
• finish the degree
• Argentina in the Winter
• overcome my fear of riding a bike
• give George the window seat on a cross-Atlantic plane trip
• go kayaking
• make homemade ice cream
• drive a tractor
• learn how to drive a stick shift
• take a mudbath
• get buried in sand
• learn the names of the constellations
• tea in Japan
• meet a president
• front row at a cavs game
• be part of a book club
• bake for a bake sale
• gather eggs directly from a chicken coup in a basket
• explore the New Seven Wonders of the World
• ride a horse again
• volunteer at an animal shelter
• ride on a hot air balloon for gram
• learn how to use a letterpress
• view a play on Broadway
• own a sewing machine and sew a dress for myself
• soak in a claw foot tub
• buy something large at an antique shop
• teach Noah how to read
• take a women's studies class
• take 100 public tours in Ohio
• tile a floor by myself
• catalog a media collection
• go see a movie alone
• learn 200 new games
• cook rissotto
• learn how to dive
• solve a difficult math problem
• become encouraging of other people's dreams
• design a textile
• find a perfect shade of lipstick for me
• be able to cook 200 different soups successfully
• carve a toy out of wood
• throw a football far and accurately
• discover my own religious beliefs
• take a surfing lesson
• work on a ranch for a day
• take a tour of castles in the UK
• jury duty
• save 6 months worth of salary
• take a mediteranean cruise
• host a formal dinner party
• go meatless for a month