Step By Step

I met a woman many many years ago, Julie, who shared that she was on a pilgrimage around Michigan to promote a camp she was creating - Morningstar.  Wearing a backpack, shorts, a billowing green shirt, boots and carrying a simple walking stick, she was gypsy'ish, almost hippy'ish, in appearance.  A great conversationalist, I enjoyed hearing her very expansive story.

I've thought of Julie, often, over the years, and wondered if her dream ever came to fruition; mainly, I was secretly envious of her as I always carried a dream to be on a pilgrimage to something or somewhere.  Life and responsibilities intervened, and yet I never lost my desire to create my very own challenge with a cause, like Julie.

Then I got to thinking (occasionally a bad thing when excess time presents itself - ask my husband). Why not do something extreme and allow me to be the cause, purpose and subject?  My kids are gone, am retired (there has to be a better word for this - retirement almost says to me that at a certain age, we are tired...thinking on that), my husband and children are very supportive.  Bam!  A walking, cycling, spinning and elliptical adventure of 1500-2016 miles from September 1, 2015 to December 31, 2016, was birthed...perfect!

This vision board of my long-long dream - my own challenge - A Pilgrimage to Celebrate My Life - my personal adventure, odyssey, saunter, trek.  The life coaching class I took gave us ownness and support as our vision boards materialized, and am pleased with how mine speaks to what I plan to accomplish as it now stands, not only as a reminder, but a record, of my, gulp, endeavor.  

This year has been fraught with illness and weakness and deaths and turmoil - yet, also hope of actualizing who I am in the face of the secret unknown, to make me "better" so I can better serve and help others, unselfishly and willingly.  

Visualizing the end goal - 489 days to achieve 1500-2016 miles.  Gotta get my walking sticks (many) out and cleaned of spider webs.  I'm pumped!

Redefined by Time

I retired - youngish - and am on the second month without the confines of work.  Time is spent exploring what I want from life.  Through this exciting exploration, I am haunted by negative remarks about my own potential, such as, "A zebra doesn't change his stripes" and "admit it, you are too old to change"!  These feel like roadblocks in my quest to do exactly that - change and grow and challenge myself.  Way hidden in the depths of my soul, I believe those quotes, and am struggling to break free of their pointed deletion of a person's potential when they reach a certain age; 62 in my case.

Dreaming is what I do... spending captured time musing about what could be and how I would play a role in this dream.  I have accomplished a few things in my life; am open to change; forgive the lost opportunities of the past, and focusing on what is to be in the future.  ...and yet, those quotes get me in the gut.  Am I fooling myself into thinking I'll grow and try something significant, at my "advanced" age?

So, to prepare for this phase of living, yes living, I took a blogging class at Interlochen Fine Arts Camp in Michigan, where, among other teachings, we began new blogs - mine being The Barefoot Norwegian.

So, I tore our small galley kitchen apart, chose calming new colors, and proceeded to sand, paint, toss and create a pleasant and peaceful place to create meals.

So, I am taking a class with a life coach, where we not only discuss our hopes and blocks, we are creating steps to moving, or redefining ourselves, from this point forward.  I'm the oldest in this class of accomplished women, but also know I'm an equal in life and excited to see where this stage of retirement will lead me.

Baby steps...