Chief Bedohavé

There once was a wise Native American Indian chief and his name was Chief Bedohavé. I figure for my first blog post I need to tell you his story and how it relates to mine. I can't quite remember how it goes but it runs along the lines of finding out who you want to be, what you want to do, and what you want to have and how he got his tribe to evaluate their lives in this way. For the past eleven years I have reflected on my own life and the things that I want to achieve. When I was eleven years old I attended a summer camp that changed my life. It was there that Major General T.S. Jones, USMC (ret) introduced me to the Chief. Honestly it changed my life because I ended up working at Outdoor Odyssey eventually and creating my Bedohavé as a child is what helped me with identifying and achieving that goal. D+A=R.

My Bedohavé is something that I'm constantly having to update as I keep reaching goals and hitting milestones in my life. I keep it written in a red leather bound journal that sits on the top of my bookshelf. It hasn't always been as eloquently written but I have gotten it to a place where I am content. So here it goes, my personal mission statement...

Bedohavé*

Be: I want to be able to say I am a giver not a taker, but I do not want to be so blind that if I need help along the way that I will not ask for some assistance. I want to be the woman the woman my mother wants me to be; even if that is not an attainable goal. I want to be generous, kind, courageous, and caring. I want to be curious and I never want to let fear take away the fun. I want to be someones role model. I want to embody the leadership traits and strive to become better. I want to be spontaneous! I want to be open minded to new ideas and people always. I want to be the best I can and always keep a smile on while doing it.

Do: I want to graduate college. My dream was to become an art therapist but I'm kind of testing the waters of life right now. Whatever I do find my dream to be I never want it to feel like work. I want to live life on the edge and stretch my dash as far as it will go. I will accomplish my goals whether it be by the path I want to take or the path that I need to take. I want to seek adventure from all the corners of the Earth. I want to go camping in all fifty states. I want to marry my soul mate, someone who will treat me like the queen that I am. I want to be genuinely happy. I want to live by faith. I want to provide for the people I love. I want to live like a "strong woman". I want to live by the girl scout law. I want to teach the philosophies to the people I meet. I want to become a motivational speaker and tell people my story. I want to continue to improve my sign language skills. I want to make a difference and change peoples lives one at a time. I want to have self respect and value my self worth even on my worst days.

Have: I want to have children but not just that I want a family and a home. I want to have laugh lines and good health. I want to have positive people surround me wherever my life may lead. I want to have a dog to cuddle when I'm alone and go on runs with when I have the energy. I want to have enough but not too much. Aaaannndd time for my selfish thing...my dream home if you can picture this is a big white house with a wrap around porch with tons of flowers and plants. One day I'll have a converted barn with the upstairs as an art studio and the downstairs as a wood shop/workshop.

*Disclaimer: These are all things you want out of life not things that you need. Remember you can make yourself happy if you use your resources wisely.