Reflecting on my Year of Firsts

Since completing my Year of Firsts a few days ago, I have gone back and read through all my posts documenting my journey as a way of sealing in the experiences of the year. Before I started this project, I naively imagined that it would somehow make my life more glamorous, exotic, adventurous, and interesting. In some ways, I was right. I have things that fit into each of those categories on my list of Firsts. But, honestly, that wasn't the norm. My life still remained my life. I still had four kids that needed to be schooled and fed and carpooled. I still had limiting attitudes and fears and a lack of motivation at times. I had injuries and illnesses, which became Firsts in their own rights but not ones I would have necessarily chosen for myself. Sometimes, I seriously had to stretch the definition of "First" to come up with something that would "count." The Year of Firsts wasn't exactly what I imagined it would be, but it was wonderful and full of great lessons nonetheless. Focusing on Firsts helped me see the novel even in the mundane. It helped me push myself out of my comfort zone and try new things I might not have ever even thought to try. It made me move closer to a "Yes, And" default rather than my usual "No," though, of course, I still have work to do. My day-to-day life didn't really change significantly, but my attitude toward my day-to-day life did change significantly. I developed new eyes with which to view my days. I'm thankful that I decided to celebrate the entrance into a new decade with a Year of Firsts, and though the project has come to its official end, the lessons it has taught me have not. I will continue to try new things. I will continue to look for the novel even in the mundane. I will continue to make positive changes in my life, even if I am not recording them for all the world to see.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Five: Going Out With A Bang

I love that on the last day of my Year of Firsts project I have many Firsts to report!

First of all, Max and Clay and I had a chance to go to Doubletree Ranch Park in Highland Village today, which is a truly wonderful and beautiful public park, with so many great amenities including a large splash pad and a meeting room that looks like a barn.

The Doubletree Ranch Party Barn

Only one part of the immense splash pad

Our reason for being there was for the back-to-school party for the new homeschool group we will participate with this school year. This was our first time meeting the families that will make up Arrow, and we have already made some friends.

After the party, I followed up on yesterday's First by taking myself to a chiropractor who was willing to see me on very short notice. It was my first chiropractic appointment, my first time to have a TENS massage on my back, and my first time to have a spinal adjustment. My back is certainly not pain free after all of that, but it is definitely so much better than it was last night! I'll have a follow-up appointment on Monday to try to move along the healing.

Paying for yesterday's First

Another First came later in the afternoon when Clay got the cooking bug. I convinced him we should make banana bread with our surplus of overripe bananas, and he convinced me we should add chocolate chunks. I never have made banana bread with chocolate chunks, but it seemed like a good move, so we went with it.

Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread

Finally, we celebrated my father-in-law's birthday at our favorite conveyor belt sushi place in Carrollton where I tried a unique Japanese dessert called Cream Anmitsu--agar (red algae) jelly, sweet azuki bean paste, fruit, and ice cream. It was...interesting.

Cream Anmitsu

This Year of Firsts has been so fun and educational (and occasionally painful), and I'm so thankful for all the new experiences I've had! Thanks for following along! I hope you've been inspired to try some new things as well, regardless of whether you're celebrating a milestone birthday or not.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Four: Back Pain

My Year of Firsts decided to have sort of a last laugh and remind me of my age by delivering back pain to me today like I have never experienced. Like wanting to cry, unable to move, taking muscle relaxers and pain pills left over from knee surgery type pain. And, I can't think of any particular incident that would have caused it, though maybe that's yet another testament to my age. 😉 It' not exactly the First I was hoping for, but I guess it's an appropriate bookend for this crazy Year of Firsts that started with my knee injury.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Three: Bookcase Assembly

We have been in need of a bookcase for a while, but the space where we wanted to put it can only accommodate a bookcase of very specific, non-standard dimensions. I finally found a shelf of the correct dimensions on Amazon and ordered it almost without thinking. It arrived while we were out of town, so when we got in this afternoon, I was anxious to put it together. I have put together a couple of other pieces of flat-pack furniture but never a bookcase. I was proud of myself for putting the whole thing together without help, with a regular screwdriver rather than a power tool.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Two: Five Quick Things

The lady who runs the Art of Simple blog, which posted an essay of mine on Friday, also puts out an email newsletter each week for subscribers entitled "5 Quick Things." In it, she tells a bit about what's going on in her world and then links to five things on the web that are interesting to her. The newsletter came out today, and it was fun to see the link to my post on the Art of Simple blog. It was the same essay, of course, but a new format of promotion (and the best First I could come up with for today).

Screenshot of 5 Quick Things
(The link to my guest post is in the Number 4 slot.)

Day Three Hundred Sixty-One: Old Spanish Trail Gallery and Museum

Jeff and I decided to take a little walk this afternoon without much of a plan as to where we would go. But then, Jeff remembered a little art gallery a couple of miles up the road that he had taken Clay to last summer when I wasn't here, so we headed in that direction. When we got there, a sign on the door informed us that the musuem was open "by appointment only." We were disappointed but took advantage of the rocking chairs on the porch to rest a while in the shade before heading back to the campground. We were happily enjoying the beautiful view and the hum of the many hummingbirds when a car pulled up and a woman got out with keys in her hand. And soon enough, we were in. The Old Spanish Trail Gallery and Museum is one of the most remote art galleries I have ever been to, but it was very nice and contained paintings, pottery, and sculptures reflecting the spirit of west Texas. It was a lovely little field trip and a nice dose of culture!

On the right path to the gallery

The wagons constitute the museum portion of the building

Enjoying the gallery's porch

Day Three Hundred Sixty: Pursuing the Present

"Before anybody can even think about their intentions and what they want out of life, they need to discover what it means to be present." This quote comes from a book by Mallika Chopra called "Living with Intent," which I am currently reading. The author makes the point that it is easy for our thoughts to dwell on the past or race ahead to the future but that it is fairly difficult for them to settle on the present. This is certainly true for me, and reading this book has made me more aware of my need to be more present. So, during my run this morning, I began trying to force myself to focus on the present moment by tuning in to my senses. I wouldn't allow myself to think of anything except the sound I was hearing or the object I was seeing in the present moment. When my mind started to wander, I picked a new sense and focused on it completely for a few seconds. I have never done this kind of exercise before, but it was a good practice. It felt peaceful and grounding.

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Nine: Early Morning Run in the Davis Mountains

Almost every summer for the last 20 years, I have been coming out to the Davis Mountains to spend time with family at a little encampment Jeff's family has been coming to for almost 100 years. Never once in any of that time have I ever gone for a run of any kind, much less one that took place at dawn, mostly because for most of that time I was neither a runner nor a morning person. But this was my year! What an amazing way to start the day!

Early morning run in the Davis Mountains

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Eight: Guest Post on Art of Simple Blog

First Number 228, which occured way back in March, was submitting an essay for possible publication on the Art of Simple blog. I was proud of myself for taking the time to write and submit the essay and of the words I had written, but when I didn't hear back from AoS after a couple of months, I figured they had decided not to use my essay. And, that was ok because I had accomplished what I had intended, which was just to put something out there. During our travels this summer, I kind of even forgot I had submitted the essay, so I was quite surprised a week ago when I received an email saying that my guest post would be up this week. I follow AoS closely and always enjoy the posts and community there, and I can't tell you how honored I felt to get to be a part of that in a new way! It is my first time to have a guest post on any blog other than my own, and I'm thrilled that it is a cyber space I enjoy so much! You can check out the post here: https://theartofsimple.net/success/

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Seven: The Magnolia, A Coffee Giveaway, and A Giant Eyeball

A friend if mine was bartending for the evening at the historic Magnolia Hotel in downtown Dallas, so I popped over to say hi and to check out the building with the iconic neon pegasus perched on top, which I never had been in. It was a fun experience!

The Magnolia

On my way out of the hotel, I grabbed a complementary cup of coffee in the lobby and quickly had an opportinity for another First. Almost immediately, I was approached by a homeless woman, who told me all she needed was a cup of coffee. I offered her the cup in my hand, and she happily took it and began drinking it as she walked away. I have certainly not had an experience like that before.

Only a block away from the hotel, there is a fascinating giant eyeball sculpture, which is a landmark of note in Atlas Obscura, making it a must-visit attraction if you're already in the area. Since I was, in fact, in the area, I added that to my lists of Firsts for the day.

Interesting things are everywhere;
you just have to keep an eye out for them!

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Six: Beaded Bracelet Class

Our library has been offering some great classes lately, and I'm glad I've been able to take advantage of some of them. Today's class was on how to make a beaded bracelet out of safety pins. The process takes some thought and attention to detail, as well as some time, but it's actually pretty simple. I am proud of the bracelet I produced and the new skill I learned.