My last 5 posts describe an extended, quirky to-do list tool that I use in my corporate training (click here to download a copy for you to use).  It has 5 parts:

(I love that out of the 5 categories only two are about adding things.  Can we collectively breath a sigh of relief?)

- to do, to continue doing,  to stop doing, to not do, to done (no, the last one’s not a typo) (here’s a description of each)

I’m continuing to share how I’m personally filling them in.  For my 2010 to-do’s see this post.  For my continue to do’s see this post. For my things to stop doing click here. And here are my not to do’s.

This post is about my to-done’s. No that’s not a typo.

Most of us are so focused on what we want to do, to accomplish, to be or to have that we take nary a nanosecond to focus on what we’ve already done.  Our accomplishments.  The things that make us feel proud, accomplished and grateful.

We don’t look over our shoulder, back in time, and reflect on the road we’ve traveled.

And if we don’t do that then it follows that we don’t take a moment to pat ourselves on the proverbial back.  To heave a sigh of thanks, to send a prayer of gratitude to whomever may be listening.

In that spirit, here are some of my to-done’s.

- I’m excited about having been accepted into the Forum for Women Entreprenuer’s E-series program.  I’m looking forward to a learning packed six months with my fellow E-series colleagues.

- I’m very proud of my United Nations work last year.  I wrote a new manual on program evaluation and piloted it with UN folks from Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda.  It was work that was deeply fulfilling, challenging and whole heck of a lot of fun.

- After a two year hiatus due to minor injuries, I’m really happy to say that our family is back on the ski hills again.  We’ve made it up the mountain twice this year (no mean feat given how many accoutrements the sport comes with).  There’s nothing like shushing down the slopes with my family, being enveloped by the natural B.C. beauty and enjoying hot chocolate and warming one’s toes at lunch.

- I’m indebted to the impulse that had me gather good friends together one evening some 4 years ago.  We call ourselves the Goddesses.  That group of women, as diverse and eclectic as we are, has met monthly all this time with the purpose of simply being onselef and checking in, whether we’re tired and grump or wildly ecstatic about some new project.  What a privilege – space to simply be yourself and be treasured.

And continuing with the tradition of setting a song to each element of the to-do list, the one for to-done’s is Kool and the Gang’s ‘Celebration’.

And you?  What have you to-done?  What gives you pause to look behind you, at the road traveled, and give yourself a pat on the back?

I watched some weaverbirds making nests while running on the treadmill the other morning.  Picking up twigs from the children’s playground they industriously wove them together.  I marvel that they make 5-6 nests for every one they use (better protection).  I especially marvel that the entrance to the domed nests is at the bottom and when they lay their eggs they somehow stay inside.

I like that at the UN cafeteria there is food from all over the world.  I especially like that the line up for African food is longest.

The brakes to the bus that took us to/from Naivasha sounded exactly like screech owls.

I withdrew 300,000 from the bank the other day.  Ugandan shillings that is.

Traffic there is like bumper cars without the bumps.  There is a discernible pattern but it’s very hard to find.

Confession time: I get a little (okay big) thrill when the UNDP driver, John picked me up in the UN vehicle.  Makes me shiver.

To take a matatu (public transit van) when it’s raining costs double.

Seen on the back of a matatu (think wild and crazy drivers that trace modern art patterns through traffic): Pray for us

Made cookie dough the other night in Nairobi.  There was no electricity so couldn’t bake (no problem, in my house cookie dough rarely makes it into the oven).  I joked with a Honduran guest that this was how all Canadians ate cookies.  Had to quickly correct myself when she believed me.

When bulls fight it’s the grass that gets hurt (Honduran saying from said guest.)

We had been working on designing a survey for youth who had taken part in training at the One Stop Youth Centre.  I was working in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania last week doing follow-up to the program evaluation training I did in Naivasha for the United Nations.

Dar es Salaam means ‘haven of peace’ in Arabic.  I found haven in a hotel right around the corner from the City Council where the OSYC is housed.

My room was on the 10th floor.  The restaurant was on the 9th floor.  Now in my world when I subtract 9 from 10 I get 1.  As in walk one floor down and voila the restaurant.

Not so much.

I walked one floor down and got onto some in between floor.  I was no longer in the hotel.  I was on a floor that contained multiple small business offices.  It wasn’t decorated the same.

Confused, I scratched my head and wondered if this is what Alice felt like when she fell down the rabbit hole.

I never did get the hang of the elevators or stairwells.  Certain elevators went to some floors and not others.  Certain elevators would be reached round corners, twisting this way and, after a 5 minute walk.

The sign that pointed to the gym was in vain.  There was no gym.

Perhaps it was the humidity.  As I write this the humidity level is 84%.  My international weather website forecast for Dar actually has water dripping from the sun. Translation: eyes tell me I am walking through air but skin feels like I am swimming through water.

At any rate, one can only take so much survey design before the need for sustenance takes over.  I suggested we go for Lebanese food.

My colleagues greeted me with blank looks.  Lebanese?  Huh?

“Sure’” I said, “it’s only two blocks away.  Great food.  The hummus and feta are tasty and the prices reasonable.”

To which followed a somewhat lengthy explanation as none of them knew the restaurant, despite it being 2 blocks from their workplace.

Welcome to my home, Tanzania, I joked with them.

When we arrived at the restaurant, two colleagues ordered the ubiquitous fries and chicken and two colleagues joined me in sampling the hummus, feta and pita.

When I ask if one of my colleagues wants to share our food, he replies that switching from chicken wings to chicken legs is enough of a change for him.

Point taken.

We all take our change in different paces and measures.  What’s drastic change for me might be commonplace for you.

How do you like your chicken …. what’s small pocket change for you?  What’s ‘hang onto your hat, we’re going for a roller coaster ride’ change for you?

During my recent five days of doing intensive program evaluation training in Kenya for the United Nations,, we created a bit of a spectacle with our training.  To keep the content interesting I constantly did games and activities that were frequently very loud.  The wait staff always hung around to watch.  We play and learn and play and learn.

A retired English couple staying at the lodge was very interested in what we’re doing.  They asked for a ‘performance’.

Skip ahead to that evening when we hired a boat to take us to look at the hippos. We bought some fish which our guide then whistled loudly three times and threw into the water.  Fish eagles (think large bald eagles) heard him and swooped down to snatch and eat the fish.  Very cool.

Later, as we watched hippos, flamingos, pelicans, an Egyptian goose, and weaver birds the group wanted another song.  Now even though I push the envelope quite a bit with my corporate clients, singing is not something I tend to do.  So was scratching my head trying to remember more songs (had already taught them a bunch of interactive songs, that they sing random phrases of during the training much to my delight) and lit upon the Irish Rovers ‘Unicorn’ song, to which I used to sing along to in bars at Expo and learned hand motions to.

Sure enough there we were a boatload of folks belting our hearts out and rocking the boat to our hand movements, singing to the hippos.

Fast forward to that night.  Turns out it was the British couple’s 46th wedding anniversary, so after a cake procession, which all 12 wait staff and cooks brought out and accompanied with drums and ululations we went over and performed for the couple.  The irony of singing an Irish drinking song to an English couple with Ugandans, Rwandans, Tanzanians and Kenyans was not lost on me. Insert big goofy grin here.

When was the last time you combined diverse and divergent elements to come up with something new and fresh?  Tell me about it, I’d love to hear from you.

Nocturnal visitor

Here’s to firsts. First kiss.  First car, first job, first love.  From the first time you triumphed, and the first time you surprised yourself to the first time you left home (and the first time you came back).  First time you crashed and burned.  First time you discovered your passion.  And here’s to Rock.Paper.Scissors’ first blog post.

Last week I was in Naivasha, Kenya doing an intensive 5 day training on a program evaluation manual I wrote for the United Nations with folks from Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda.  Now I’m writing my first blog post from Kampala, Uganda where I’m doing follow-up on the training. It’s the first time I’ve been in Kampala.

While in Naivasha it was the first time I awoke at midnight to the very loud sounds of a very large beast chomping and chewing.  I could hear greenery being ripped from the earth, chewed and swallowed.

I ran to my window to see what the mystery creature was but, even though I pressed my face flat to the glass, whatever large creature was making the noise was out of sight, just around the corner.  Practicing how to quickly lock and unlock the door, I decided to take a peek.  I didn’t have the door open 3 inches when said large beast charged forward, snorting and pounding the earth.

Slamming and locking the door I ran to the window and there, to my surprise, saw an African buffalo staring back at me, not 20 feet away.  I had interrupted its midnight grazing, not 2 feet from where I’d stood.

I went back to bed, heart pounding, telling myself to go back to sleep as I had to teach all next day.  Finally heart slowed, I drifted off, once again to the malaria medicine induced world of bizarre dreams.

Other than midnight visits from African Buffalos, let me introduce myself:

• I once lived in a house that had a jail cell
• I went to university on a ship that sailed around the world
• I work with the former President of Mozambique, the Honourable Joaquim Chissano, winner of the largest individual prize in the world (the Mo Ibrahim Award for Good Governance)
• when it comes to program evaluation I believe that suffering is optional – program evaluation can be useful, interesting, fun and creative.
• I will continue peacebuilding training that I do with the UN in Kenya and Mozambique in the new year
• I work with professional comedians, as I believe humour is one gateway to powerful learning
• I was born to teach and train, it’s in my blood.  I enjoy nothing more than setting a smorgasbord of diverse learning opportunities that’s so sumptuous that participants can’t help but help themselves
• I know what the term Lusophone means
• I have been inside the ring at a Moroccan camel wrestling competition
• I have accompanied Inuit hunters to hunt caribou in -97 degree weather
• I have been a single married mama
• two years ago I lost 30 pounds and along the way learned much about the process of change / how to affect change

In future postings I’ll be writing about things that are near and dear: travel, change, communication, conflict and wellness.  Through the lessons I’ve learned from my unusual life experiences I hope to give you a different viewpoint, encourage you to examine the way you look at the world and your point of view, perhaps give you a double take now and again.

“The world is like a mask dancing.  If you want to see it well you do not stand in one place” (from Arrow of God, Chinua Achebe, Nigeria).

Here’s to moving about to gain a new perspective.  And here’s to firsts, taking a leap and having faith.

“Sometimes you must leap she said gently and grow your wings on the way down.” Kirsten Yongen

I’d love to hear from you.  When was the last time you took a leap of faith and did something for the first time?