Growing Up

 THE RESOLUTION: Designated Driver  is now,

THE RESOLUTION: Travel Stories

I designed ThirteenSquared not only as an occasion to create positive change and opportunity for myself but also as a way to give back to my friends, family, community, and the world at large. One of first resolutions I committed to, required that I put myself in the role of “designated driver” thirteen times in the duration of this project. 

One very important trait you need to understand about me is that I am competitive to my very core and I will always achieve what I set my mind to, as long there is someone else holding me to it. (I attribute this as the number one reason why this accountability blog has been so successful.) Admitting defeat is a horrible and painful thing for me, so I’m not going to! Instead, I am analyzing the current challenges I am facing, as well as my long term goals as a writer. Truthfully, I didn’t even know I wanted to be a writer of any sort until a few months ago. I never thought I would have the opportunity. I was too scared of everything to even try. Until now...

This blog has evolved so quickly and is already well beyond my initial expectations. Each new entry forces me to search deeper within myself and after 4 months and more than 70 challenges conquered, I realize how much I’ve learned about myself throughout this process.  In the past when someone asked me, ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’ the answer always eluded me. Now I have suddenly acquired a sense of clarity and direction that I never had before. My consciousness actually has an answer. A real goal with tangible obstacles that I can finally and decisively overcome. 

Traveling and writing. That’s my answer. 

So as a purposeful alternative to the designated driver resolution, I will be developing thirteen original and real travel stories. ThirteenSquared has already provided the perfect framework for what I can expect as a future freelance writer in one of the most competitive industries in the world. After all, who doesn’t want to get paid to travel the world?

Still, I feel I owe you an explanation. I battled long and hard with the decision to change a resolution so far into this quest. I am not a quitter, but amongst the introspection and lessons surfacing lately, I recognize that I’ve grown up in many ways. I have become a more withdrawn and responsible person in recent years. I am liberated of the culture and peer pressure of wild weekend outings that I once considered necessary as a part of socializing. Going out and having drinks is now a rare occasion for me. The few occasions in which it has happened this year have involved alternative manners of being a responsible drinker such as walking to a nearby bar or opting to have a sleepover instead. 

I am the last of my friends to get my license so the choice to share in the designated driven burden was never there. Still I am indebted to those who always made sure I made it home safely and I still intend to repay those favours whenever the opportunity arises. This amendment to ThirteenSquared promises to bring stories on a much grander scale though, along with helping me to cast a wider net on my future promises. Hopefully I will get to bring even a small following of readers with me as I embark on this brand new path I am paving for myself.

One woman. One year. 169 Resolutions.