Choose Your Own Adventure

If you’re old enough, you might remember these awesome books where you could choose the next steps of the main character, and flip to a new page to find out the outcome. I loved those! In fact, choosing your own adventure is kind of the best part of being an adult, you can do whatever you want! Of course, after a while, you settle into less “adventurous” times as you build a career, tend to your home, or care for pets/children/partners/parents. It may feel these days like the most adventurous thing you do is to binge watch a new season of your favorite show. No shame in that game! Binge watching is a great way to relax.

However, if you’re like me, you might be feeling like there are other things you “could” or “should” be doing. Some of those things are chores, or responsibilities. Or, perhaps things like exercise, or taking a walk! It can be easy to judge ourselves, and decide that we are lazy, or in a rut. I invite you to take a step back, and see if we can shift our thinking. What would happen if instead of thinking about what we “should” be doing, we rephrased the question to “What adventure will I have today?” I know what you’re thinking, we’re regular humans with jobs who are tired, not Disney characters. I hear you. But stick with me here. What if you had a list of things that qualified as adventures, that were doable, affordable, and that could fit in your day? And more importantly, what if those things were fun? This is what I set out to do, as part of my quest to do more with my limited free time than sit on the couch. Don’t get me wrong, I still sit on the couch, but I also have access to a list of potential Adventures at my fingertips! I used the notes app in my phone to create a list of things that appealed to me. Here’s what’s on my list:

Sarah’s List of Adventures

• Guided meditation (YouTube)

• Walk outside

• Yoga with Adrienne (YouTube)

• Dance party in the living room

• Breathing video (YouTube)

• Reading a Book

• Stretching

• Drinking a Tea

• Write a Gratitude List

• Practice Spanish

• Snuggling

• Play with Babies

• Hike in the Woods

• Make a Candle Lit Dinner

• Go to Museum

• Listen to a Podcast

• Draw / Sketch

• Write a Poem

Now, when I start to hear that familiar voice in my head that says “Shouldn’t you be doing something more productive”, I can say “Yes Beverly, I’m working on it, calm down”. I’ve named my judgy voice Beverly, but we’ll talk more about that later. I pop open my list, pick the thing that sounds like the most fun, and get after it!

The last time I did this, I chose to walk in downtown Northampton. I love the people watching and window shopping. I randomly decided to get a haircut, and the stylist I met ended up connecting me to a group in my town that was working on issues I cared about. I also got a delicious smoothie, and ran into a family friend. I find that when I’m on these little adventures, magic is afoot!

I invite you to make your own version of the Adventure List. The benefit of doing this, is that you have something physical to look at, already filled with things you love. The more we do the things that light us up, the better we feel. And when we feel good, we attract more goodness into our lives. What adventure will you choose tomorrow?

Warmly,

Sarah