I turned 21 and in doing so, I knew quickly that getting wasted and not even remembering such a paramount birthday was not the way I wanted to go. So I began considering all the ways that I could turn 21 in a way that was different than most Americans or youth my age. With much thought, I came up with doing 21 deeds for my 21st birthday. After skyping my mother and enlightening her on what I wanted to do, she was thrilled and agreed to do 21 deeds as well in honor of my birthday. So I have come up with 21 deeds to do to others on April 13, 2013, my 21st Birthday. Pictures are sure to come as I tackle 21 ways to brighten someones day. As a college student, money is a large factor, so my task was to find 21 deeds that I could do without breaking the bank. With careful consideration I decided to attempt these 21 deeds.
1. Go to the mirror of the school bathroom and write “Vous étes belle aujourd’hui!” (Disclaimer: To those who do not know me: I am in Nice, France right now on my study abroad so I think I should put this one in French it means ‘You look beautiful today!’)
2. Leave a word of encouragement in French in a library book.
3. Buy flowers and give them to kids at L’hopital Lernval who need some extra support for the day.
4. Give the homeless man I see all the time some food.
5. Consciously make an effort to stop my own bad habit during my year lifestyle change: Chewing pen caps (I know, I know, it is gross but I do it all the time in class, at home, on Skype, etc.)
6. High five joggers as they run on the promenade ( I have done this one before as I was running and I have seen nothing but smiles for the extra ‘get me up’)
7.Leave extra change in the drink machine at school
8. Leave pennies facing up at a playground for kids to find
9. Give a euro to a kid on the bus who is being well behaved
10. Make peace with my past mistakes (All of them!)
11. I thought of buying cookies for the fireman at the firestation here in Nice but as I am promoting a healthier world, I will bring them strawberries 😀
12. Pay someones bus fare (1 euro)
13. Buy fruit pops if the weather permits and pass them out the nearby playground.
14. Carry grocery bags for elderly to their car
15. Have my mom donate my (oh so beautiful) prom dress to the Princess Project back home
16. Hold the door open for 5 people
17. Write a letter to congress about how upset I am that the Monsanto Protection Act was signed by Obama
18. Pick up a bag full of trash around my residence
19. Give my favorite custodian flowers for her daily clean up
20. Slip pieces of paper on cars saying a special quote
21. Make a new friend in my hall and invite them to have dinner with me
Pictures will ensue once all my deeds have been fulfilled…I am pretty excited to make this happen and maybe I will be able to do more by being observant and thinking about other people instead of myself.
A year without to clean within 