Day 201: Recount and Reflect

Before I get started, I’ve gotta say this: today is my 101st post. Can you believe that Meg and I have each written 100 blog posts??? I’m floored that I’ve done 100 of anything…

As Meagan so aptly wrote last night, this project of ours has been (and continues to be) a JOURNEY. In honour of our emergence into the 200′s, I am thinking it is timely that I take a pause to recount and reflect on each of the challenges we’ve tackled so far. I would like to provide an update in terms of how I have managed to (or not, depending on the particular challenge!) maintain the changes/learnings/progress I made in each month.

Here goes:

• January: “Less is More” - This was about decluttering physically, mentally and emotionally. Overall, I  have remained physically decluttered. The basement I worked so hard to organize is… still organized (phew!). I am proud to say that I now routinely cook on my kitchen island as it too is clear from piles of clutter. I’ve got a system down where we have a shelf in the basement where we continually collect items for donations – when that shelf fills up, I make a trip to Women in Need. Mentally decluttering? Ahhh… it is fair to say that I still have a lot of work to do with that one. I started a new job in January with the purpose of reducing my mental clutter/stress and that has helped significantly, in terms of creating a much better balance between my work and home life. I also still commit to my daily ‘thinking time’ in the car, which (big surprise here!) helps me to clear my mind. Yet, I still struggle to prioritize my sleep and self-care, both of which affect my mental and emotional clutter. Emotionally… well, talk about a journey! Realistically, I do not think that emotional wellbeing is a journey that ever ends. At the very least, I can say that I am living with much less guilt around working out in particular, which is one less thing taking up space in the ol’ noggin.
• February: “Sugar Rehab” - Remember when we ‘sacked the (refined) sugar’ for an entire month? Whoa… even just thinking about it now makes me queasy: February. Was. Tough. Oy, that was such a hard month for me. I had no idea how much sugar affects me physically and emotionally. And, I’m sad to say that since March 1st I’ve been back to eating just as much sugar as before, if not a little bit more… whoops
• March: “Vanity Insanity” – This was about facing and challenging our own vanity re: our physical selves. Because hair has been ‘my thing’ for as long as I can remember, I decided to shave my head. This is probably one of the challenges I am most proud of. I really took this one on! Not only that, but Meagan and I ended up raising a swack of money for Wellspring Calgary too! When I initially shaved my head I had two primary experiences: in my personal life I felt strong, brave, proud. In my professional life I felt awkward, ugly, vulnerable. It was kind of fascinating to have such contrasting experiences stemming from one action. Because I shaved my head, my vanity challenge has extended far beyond the month of March. I have just recently grown in enough hair that it looks pretty much like an average pixie cut. I am still rocking my natural, “mousy-brown” hair colour (I’ve since discovered that I do, indeed, have some grey in there!) and I fully intend to give up colouring my hair altogether.
• April: “Green Please” – This is when we committed to doing one positive act for the environment each day. Sadly, we had a VERY small turn-out for our community clean up event, but hey, we did it anyways and it was still fun. Did our garbage-picking make a significant impact on the environment? Not likely, but it is a heck of a lot better than doing nothing. Besides, I LOVED this challenge! In fact, I think I could keep doing this challenge for an entire year! I am still composting, I finally set up my rain barrel (just yesterday in fact!), I’ve switched to waaaay more eco-friendly personal grooming products (shampoo, lotions, toner, etc), I am still making my own deodorant, I even made some all-natural bug spray just last week! As for this challenge, it’s all good. I am satisfied with the progress I’ve made
• May: “Find the Kind” – For a month, Meagan and I found ways to do a random act of kindness every day. This challenge was tough for me, mostly because it stretched my creativity (which is a good thing!). My favourite memory from this month is when I walked around downtown leaving little care packages in random places to be discovered by… who knows! Clearly I’ve not maintained doing a creative, random act of kindness each day, but I do still find myself thinking of ideas and exclaiming to myself ‘now why didn’t I think of that in May?’ The best learning I took away from this month: when I am inspired by an idea of kindness, I need to act on it, because the payoff is far bigger than the effort.
• June: “Fitness First” – This month focused on doing some form of physical activity each day of the month. This challenge was good for me. It improved my sleep. It helped to clear my mind. It simply made me feel better, inside and out. Not only that, but completing the 5 km race reminded me that I am capable of so much more than I give myself credit for (and, believe you me I needed that reminder!). Given all of these benefits, have I kept up with the physical activity??? Ummm, kind of. I’m not doing as much as I would like, but I’m also not doing as little as before the challenge. I haven’t been running since, and most surprisingly, I kinda miss it. I gotta get out there again.
• July: “Unplugged” – Well, obviously this one is still in progress, so “no comment.”

Well folks, there’s the update. I wish I could say that I’ve ‘learned so much and changed all my ways‘ with each challenge, but that’s just not honest, nor very realistic. I am glad I took the time to reflect tonight on what I’ve been up to for the past 200 days, and overall, I’m feeling pretty good about it all. There are some areas I would like to brush up on again; however, like I said at the beginning of this post, it is a JOURNEY.

Warmly,

Kyla.

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