e84 Challenge – One Thing Leads to Another

Have you ever painted a room, noticing how beautiful it looks once it’s finished, and how much worse the other rooms look? With home improvement, as with self improvement, we can’t help but notice what else needs work. I’ve never been one for drastic, time-consuming, expensive projects. I prefer the process – a little at a time, over time. That way I feel like I’m accomplishing something without being overwhelmed by how much actually needs to be done.

For the last four years I’ve been chiseling away at bits I didn’t need. I’ve worked on polishing areas I liked, habits and ideas that worked. Believe it or not, the catalyst for change was my dog, Gilda. We’d gotten her from a local dog rescue, and knowing nothing about dogs and their overall needs, I bought Cesar Millan’s Cesar’s Way, and began walking Gilda twice a day – three miles every twelve hours. Never athletic and only sporadically active, I felt as though I’d entered a brand-new world. I became a walker.

A switch clicked on in my head. I began to consider the possibilities.

In January 2009, I began to wake up early – before my alarm – heading into the kitchen to write. Each morning I spent fifteen to twenty minutes working on what became the first draft of a novel, now in the final editing stages. The plot unfolded in my head, more often than not, when I was out with my dog.

Not until spring of 2009, when I was writing a profile of sorts for an internet dating site, did I consider the life changes I’d made, along with everything I still wanted to do. I didn’t see myself as someone who plodded through each day, looking for reasons to blame my situation on someone else (who’d done me wrong). No, I wanted to seize every moment of life I could get.

Never an athlete, I was getting in shape. I’d always wanted to write, and I’d even started a few projects that I’d abandoned. Now, I saw myself as a writer and I decided I’d never quit again. I promised myself if there was something I wanted, I was going to do my best to get it. Even if I live to 100 or more, the end will come too soon.

Today is the perfect day to do something for yourself. Ignore the reasons why not – they are just mental obstacles. When my friend, Joe, asked me if I’d like to do an e84 challenge, I said yes without even knowing what it was. I didn’t consider why I shouldn’t do it – I jumped in and figured it was one more way to improve an area of my life: my unbudging weight. No excuses – just commitment. For me, my e84 challenge came at the perfect time and is just one more opportunity to do something for myself, in a long line of opportunities.

I’m excited to see what tomorrow will bring. I trust that it will be good. Next year? Even better!

Visit me online at www.sharonhayward.myevolv.com. Or call me at 616-450-8531. Or call Joe – he can help, too. He’s Joe Manzanares at 303-923-8061 or www.drinkevolvtoday.com .

See you tomorrow!