A View From the Clouds

I have always wanted to live the road less traveled kind of life, but have never really done it. Last night, however, I got a little closer. For my husband's fiftieth birthday I surprised him with a night in a treehouse. It was a taste of childhood magic, high up in a cedar tree. Our own eagle's aerie for a night. A trickling creek sung us to sleep and the foggy morning light coming in the skylight gently woke us up.

The man who built this treehouse and the even higher observation tower is truly living the road less traveled kind of life. He actually lived in the treehouse for a couple of years, and although he lives on the ground now, he has more treehouse projects underway. He explained some of the planned construction then guided us up and around the many stairs and across the bridge to heaven and finally into the tower. The only thing that gave me pause was a hint of motion sickness as you feel a definite swaying as a breeze hits.

I may usually travel the well beaten path of life, but every now and then I plan on veering off, because the thrill of the unknown cannot be beat.

Forty nine is not usually seen as a milestone birthday. It doesn't end in a zero, and it doesn't bestow upon one any new rights or responsibilities. Yet, for me, this one is a milestone of sorts. You see, I've decided to embark upon a challenge for the next twelve months, in anticipation of the big five-o. It is nothing huge, something that anyone can do.

First off, let me explain why I'm doing this. I asked myself, what did I fear most about aging? And the answer was, drum roll please, having my life become narrower. You know how it is, you get so comfortable in your routines, that you don't even realize that you go to the same restaurants, spend your evenings in the same chair, watching the same television shows. The very sameness that is comforting also terrifies me. Because I know it will only intensify as the years go by. So this little challenge is my way to broaden my life as I journey toward my fifties.

So here it is. I've come up with six categories that I will work on in the next year.
1. Read 50 books, at least half classic literature, at least one the New Testament
2. Learn 50 new things, big or small-time consuming or not
3. Go to 50 places I've never been, a bookstore, a park-it doesn't matter
4. Eat 50 new things, a recipe or a food I've never before sampled
5. Enter 50 contests of any sort
6. Provide some type of kindness, or assistance, or service to others 50 times

This is not a typical life list with big expensive things like visit all the continents, climb Mt Everest or jump from an airplane, but I look forward to it just the same.

For those of you wondering about the title. A few years ago, actually quite a few years ago, my father told me I should start working out and training for the senior games, and I laughed and said, "Dad! I'm only forty something." And he said, "that's just a short pirouette to fifty," and he was right. Time passes so quickly.

I hope you stick around, check back from time to time and see how I'm doing on my self-imposed challenge. I don't know what the next year holds, but I'll let you know. As for right now, it's time to begin My Short Pirouette To Fifty.