Wednesday 9 December 2009

The Best of 2009: Day 9




Day 9: Challenge of the year?

This has been a year of challenges. 2009 was the year I got my heart broken and lost myself for a while. 2009 was also the year my Dad was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer. But, on the flip side, 2009 was the year I found myself. It sounds incredibly cheesy but I've learnt more about myself and who I am than this year than ever before. I am a thousand times more comfortable in my own skin now than I was a year ago. I'm two thousand times more independent. And I'm three thousand times happier with who I am.

I wrote a post in August about three goals I'd set for myself...
  • Do more things that scare me
  • Worry less
  • Love myself more

Since then I've done two things that have scared the bejesus out of me. Two things that took me to the very edge and made me grow as a person. I took part in the One & Other art project and spent an hour on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square. I used my hour to paint a portrait of my beloved Dad and raised over £2000 for the prostate cancer charity. It was one of the best days of my entire life and one that completely changed my outlook on me, my life and the world surrounding me. Secondly, I began my training as a volunteer for a UK charity that offers emotional support to those in despair or distress. Training that has caused me to challenge my perceptions, my views and the way I interact with people. Training that I completed tonight. Now the real fun begins...


It's been one hell of a year.