Over the Christmas break we were given the task to do 3 things we wouldn’t normally do. Here is a little update on how I got on/ what I go up to.

Read something you wouldn’t have read. 

Pereiera Maintains. Suggested by the almighty Tony Brignull. A small book. Which was attractive for a dyslexic contemplating the thought of reading a ’well written’ novel. My perception of ‘well written’ was long words and twisted sentences which were hard to understand.

The journey through Antonio Tabucchi’s novel is littered with mentions to the title, Sophie maintains. Drawing you back to the starting point. Constantly. It follows the compelling story of an unlikely friendship and is a great read. It’s only 195 pages. I’m not giving anymore away so you have to read it too.

Watch something you wouldn’t have watched. 

Frankenstein. The scariest thing I have watched to date was Hot Fuzz. That was too much. Frankenstein was my dad’s suggestion. In fairness, aside from a few jumpy scenes I got through it (only looking at my phone to reply to something ‘important’ twice). The biggest thing I took from this was the power of an obsession. The blinkered path you can get yourself onto, looking only to reward your own desires – which in the end came back to haunt Victor. He lost his family, job, bride and mind. Not even death separated Victor from Frankenstein.

Another observation about the film which is a little less scary is the power of nurturing what you birth. If Victor had cared for his project when it had been born and taught it love and compassion could Frankenstein not have been a monster? To me this highlighted the power of not dropping a project the instance it is born. Nurture it. Make sure it is ready for the world. Because the birth is just the beginning.

Do something you wouldn’t have done. 

For this I did 2.

First I went skiing. I am scared of heights, slippery things and travelling fast under my own control. But it enabled to do the second thing I wouldn’t normally have done, and the thing which has offered me most reward – I turned off my phone. For a week. Not just on airplane mode so I could check Instagram in bed. Completely off. Hidden at the bottom of a suitcase. It has been magical. Orla spoke in the first term about the power of switching off technology to switch on. This week I have started looking through my eyes rather than an Instagram filter. It has been so outlandishly refreshing I don’t want to go back to reality and switch it back on.