Arwen linked me to a grouping of letters written by celebrities to their younger selves. Tell you what, Gillian Anderson shot up in my esteem, and Hugh Jackman cemented his place in my pantheon of nice guys. Hugh also gave himself some advice I wish I’d had, and which I now plan to give to Thor as he grows. It goes like this:
Keep writing down one list…and one list only…the 5 things you love to do, and the 5 things you are good at…they will keep changing, but one day they will match up…and there is your path…but even then keep writing your list just to make sure you are still on the right track.
What does your list look like?
Here’s mine:
5 Things I Love To Do
- Write
- Sing
- Tell people what I know
- Make people laugh
- Be with my family
5 Things I Am Good At
- Being part of my family
- Writing
- Singing
- Teaching
- Making people feel good about themselves
If you put those lists together, I think I’m on the right track. Given that I don’t want to write or sing for a full-time living, but that I love to write and sing on the side, and given that my world is my family, I like to think I use my other Love To and Good At in my day job.
What do I wish I could do more of? I miss the amount of volunteer work I have done in the past, and when Thor is at an age I have pre-determined, we’ll start volunteering together. Well, I’ll be volunteering. He’ll be coming along whether he likes it, or not. Helping other people is healthy.
And because I brought it up, I’m wondering how much I did?
I started volunteering at Teen Court in 1983, and worked steadily for them until 1994. I racked up over 1200 hours of service at DFW Medical Center, back in the day. I volunteered as a Visitor at several nursing homes in my area, just going around and talking to the elderly for 15 minutes at a time. And I spent 12 years putting in 10-15 hours a week volunteering at church.
It’s been about 8 years–you know, planning wedding, being a newlywed, getting pregnant, having a baby, having a toddler, having a…you get the idea–since I have been in a committed volunteer relationship. I look forward to the time I can commit again.
The Outside Lane 