Who here has a dream or a wish that they have turned, or are turning, into a reality? How did that make you feel? Were you elated because the hard work had finally paid off or frightened because now you needed to either find something new or realized that the real work had just begun?

For me, it’s been a mix of both, and I often didn’t realize that I was achieving a dream until long after the goal was met and I realized it was in fact a dream of mine, not just another thing to tick off the list. This admittedly hit me very recently (OK, yesterday), when I realized that I only have 13 months to lose the 50lbs I said I would lose by the time I turned 30 (for those doing the math, I am 28 and my birthday is in September. My weight has been a big struggle for me for the last decade, as I’ve been as sick as 84 lbs when I was 20 and as high as 225 when I was 25. So, it’s always been a “if it’s meant to happen, the weight will come off again”. I had a plan and was sticking to it, then COVID-19 hit, my anxiety shot through the roof and I quelled it with treats. What cemented it for me was the realization that I have hit every single one of my goals that I wanted to achieve by my 30th birthday years in advance of it, except this one.

Let’s look at them:

  • Launch a platform for young leaders and entrepreneurs across rural Canada – CHECK.
    • Though it was initially planned as brick-and-mortar organization!
  • Get published or recognized for my work – CHECK.
  • Run for Public Office – CHECK.
    • With plans to do so again before 35 in whatever area or riding I am residing in!
  • Obtain long-term employment in a field at least semi-related to what I studied in school and allows me to broaden my horizons – CHECK.
    • Kind of, depending how you look at it!
  • Overcome an Eating Disorder and Anxiety/Depression brought on by traumatic stress that I seriously thought was going to end my life – CHECK.
  • Have the courage to speak out about my struggles with mental illness in the hopes that maybe my words and work to still stay on top of it saves someone else – CHECK.
  • Obtain the rank of Captain as a member of the Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service sub-component of the Canadian Armed Forces – CHECK.
    • That was a time-in-rank and position hold up.
  • Restart my progression towards obtaining my BA from the institution that brought me to my knees when I was 18 years old – CHECK.
    • 3 Courses down, about 15 more to go!
  • Completing a Half Marathon – CHECK.
    • I literally crawled and dragged myself off the side of the road at least 4 times, but I crossed that damn finish line. I’ve since walked the equivalent of one on 2 other separate occasions.
  • Find my passions in life – CHECK.
    • Let me tell you, I fought this one HARD because I thought my passion was too “stereotypical me” and I was trying to move away from the old me.
    • I’ll let you guess what these are. If you know me, you know what they are!

At one time, I honestly thought every single one of these was never going to happen, but I didn’t give up on them. I looked at all of these at one point and said “naw, never going to happen for me, I don’t deserve to achieve these”, but I refused to quit because I am just that stubborn in the pursuit of what sets my soul on fire. These were/are things to keep me pushing forward in both the best of times when I want to bask & rest on my laurels and when it’s a not so pretty time. If I can do all of that which I previously thought was impossible, I can tackle this last goal of my 20s. I’ll keep you all updated!

What about my 30s? Yeah, I’ve thought about that too:

  • Complete another Half Marathon.
  • Complete a Marathon.
  • Complete my first tenure as Commanding Officer (set to conclude when I am 31).
  • Finish my BA.
  • Have a career in which I feel like and know that I am making a true difference in the world (and getting paid for it because bills don’t wait).
  • Visit every Province & Territory in Canada, visit Australia, take my Mum home to the United Kingdom, and visit Ireland. Preferably getting paid to do this, but we’ll see!
  • Run for and attain Public Office.

Stay tuned!