My plan was to do 45 good things by my 45th birthday. The things could be big or small. They could affect people directly or indirectly. They could be public or very personal. The idea wasn’t to change the world, but maybe to change someone’s day.
Picking up three pieces of trash in a row didn’t count, but picking up three pieces of trash at different times of the day did. Giving money and food to people counted on a per-person basis, whether they were sitting together or in entirely different parts of town.
So, 45 Good Things later, what did I learn?
- I should have started earlier.
- Sometimes holding the elevator door really means a lot to the other person.
- No, really, I should have started earlier.
- I made a lot of donations.
- I didn’t pick up nearly as much trash as I thought I would.
- It took a lot longer than I expected.
- I could have done the whole thing just picking up dog poop.
I guess this means happy birthday?
Or, did the “should have started earlier” mean that it’s past your birthday? In which case, happy belated birthday. And happy you for being awesome.
Oh, it is way, way past my birthday! I came up with the idea last year, but didn’t actually start until January 8–and my birthday was February 6.
But thank you on all counts. 🙂