59 for 59
This summer I turned 59—my final year in my 50s! Up until now, I dreaded my birthday. Being in the middle of summer always meant my friends were away and celebrations were scarce. The main highlight was the angel food cake with lemon frosting my mom used to make. Eventually, though, that tradition transitioned into peach pie.
This year was different. My sister came to visit for the whole birthday week. We stayed up until midnight talking every night, shared dinners with my kids, enjoyed a meal at Blackbird, took walks, hiked Triple Tree and the M, and even went horseback riding at Wide Sky. My daughter Isabel surprised me on my birthday with a homemade peach pie adorned with a beautiful basket weave top. The nostalgia was heartwarming, and celebrating with my loved ones made it all the more special.
I also started making a list of 59 things I want to do in my 59th year and got a solid start thanks to conversations with my family and friends. Their suggestions guided me in the creation of this list so far. For instance, my son wants me to learn how to shotgun a beer (something I’ve never done!), and my sister insists I clean out my closet. Some things "never have I ever" done, other things I'd like to get better at, and then there are things I'd like to do more of. And, I've kept my core set of values in mind as well: Self Awareness, Leadership, Freedom, Community, and JOY!
59 for 59:
Make a pilgrimage of some sort: Camino de Santiago or Kumano Kodo in Japan
Camp with my kids in Yellowstone and/or the Tetons
Clean out my closet
Establish a capsule wardrobe
Shotgun a beer
Seek out co-ed activities
Find more time with my sister and parents
Volunteer with an organization that supports youth/young adults in Montana
Focus on building physical strength
Improve my gut health
Go on two solo van trips: Canada/Banff and Monument Valley/Four Corners
Finish knitting my pink sweater - I started it in October 2020?!
Learn how to ride a dirt bike
Paraglide over the Grand Canyon
Hunt a deer or an elk on public land
Establish a daily meditation practice, like for real
Wild swim in the lakes and rives of Montana in all four seasons
Go on a blind date😳
Read all six books in Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad series
Hike Sphinx Mountain in Montana
Build a greenhouse in my backyard
Make hard cider with the apples from my crab apple tree
Launch a subscription service for Dare to Detour
Share the Dare origin story thru a series of video shorts
Experience a winter sport retreat
Better understand my hormones, and the post menopause I’m in
Have coffee with a new person each month
Limit my time on social media to 2 hours/day
Learn how to play pickleball and/or golf
Collaborate with other businesses that embody the values of Dare to Detour
Host a neighborhood block party
Support my kids in their next steps
Establish a reflection of some sort of this list: record my reaction after doing each thing
Attend Makers Night at Stix: Thursdays from 5:30-7:00pm
Learn to two step
Learn how to bake a pie, and then churn vanilla ice cream to go with it
Focus on learning Italian
Establish a journaling practice
See the Northern Lights
Kayak with orca whales
Beekeeping in my backyard
Take piano lessons
Carve my name into a tree
Visit 5 of the 59 National Parks
Map out how I can spend half the year in 2026 abroad
Host a game night
Go on every ride at the Big Sky county fair
Attend a ranch rodeo
Take a pack trip in the Bob Marshall
Attend Oktoberfest in Leavenworth, Washington
Ice skate on all the public park rinks in Bozeman
Learn to tie a fly on a line, for real
Fish the Madison, Gallatin, Yellowstone and Flathead Rivers
Hike to watch the sunrise once a month
Plan a trip to Africa
Speak at the Bozeman PechaKucha
Get a tattoo
Learn how to change the tires on my van
Find a way to spend more time with horses
Coming up with 59 things is a true challenge. Kinda shows how easy it is to get stuck in the groove and not try new things, or to get comfy with the status quo. Would any of these be on your list? Have you done any?
