12 months

Four years ago I created a birthday list - a list of things I wanted to try in the following year. It was a fun challenge and interesting to look back on to see what I did experience.

Since next year is a more "significant" birthday and because it helps me to find ways to celebrate a birthday, another year, and life in general, I want to make it a goal to have a new experience or activity to challenge myself (maybe step out of my comfort zone) once a month for the next 12 months. Maybe it's like a birthday present to me - to find something to enjoy each month.😊 It also helps to me plan ahead a little bit... otherwise a month easily comes and goes without any intentionality. Or I struggle to think of something and make it happen within the time frame. So I'm creating at least a brief outline now, in the hopes that it inspires each month. Currently on the list:

• speak Czech in a situation where I'd be intimidated to try (this will most likely will begin this monthly challenge - I'll have the opportunity on Sunday to share in front of my church how I'm doing and what they can pray for)
• visit a place I've wanted to see in the Czech
• learn how to do something new (maybe take a painting class? maybe something else...)
• Invite someone for a meal who I've never invited before
• do a creative/hand-made project
• attend a ples (Czech prom - and this one is already scheduled for January)

and a couple possibilities that I'm considering:

• write a worship song 
• make svíčkova (my favorite Czech meal, which takes some time to make) with ingredients that I can eat
• go on an overnight river trip
• attend one of my choir's trips or mladez trips (this one would be extremely challenging for me because of language and because of the group setting... which is why I'm not sure I want it officially on the list...)
• hike Half Dome in Yosemite (this one is very dependent on receiving the permit required to do it, and a very limited amount are given out every year. But I can put my name in for the lottery drawing and see what happens!)

Can you think of others to add? I'd love to hear your ideas!

Christmas is coming, the carp is getting fat...

It seems in the US the Christmas countdown has 2 groups ... those who start listening to Christmas music as early as possible, love all the excitement and a couple months ago posted "100 days left till Christmas" (and will keep posting the countdown update throughout the season), and those who definitely won't have anything to do with it until after Thanksgiving and even then it's iffy.

In the Czech, there is no Thanksgiving, so Christmas basically starts in November - though it's never  to the extent that Americans do it. But all around are signs of Christmas, and friends are asking if I've started Christmas shopping or what plans are for Christmas. In case you don't remember, Christmas holidays are December 24-26 - all three days are State holidays. I'm not sure yet what my plans will be, but I still have time. :)

I look forward to the Christmas season in Prague. Because the winter is so dark and cold, for at least 1 month there are lights and decorations and Christmas markets and all kinds of Christmas events. It makes the otherwise dreary season quite festive. So I'm counting down... 14 days until the first Christmas market opens! :)

What has been fun this year is that my choir is singing Handel's Messiah. Not the whole thing, but a number of the more well-known chorus pieces. A fun challenge for me is that I've always sung soprano, and this year I'm singing alto. And even more fun is that the Czechs don't know the Messiah, so it's exciting to explain that it's so commonly sung in the US around Christmas. And for once in this group I feel like I have a small part to contribute with pronunciation. Let me first say that I admire Czechs who have learned or are learning English (especially because so many know multiple languages), but one thing about Czech, and most other languages, is that they don't contain the "th" sound. It often comes out sounding like "d" or "t" at the beginning of word and "s" at the end of words. So funny story from the other evening at rehearsal... we were practicing "And the glory of the Lord" and the last line is "the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Except that "mouth" comes out more like "mouse"... resulting in the mouse of the Lord speaking. :) Oh, the joys of language and culture.