What can I do in 20 minutes a day?

Michael Nobbs’ “Take the 20 Minutes a Day Challenge” post yesterday really got me thinking.

I posted a comment on his blog asking myself “Should I art journal, exercise, meditate, write, or something I’ve always wanted to do, but claim never to have the time for?”

I expanded that thinking to ask myself, “What would be fun? What have I always dreamed about, but was afraid of admitting or committing to? What have I never done before, but always wanted to? What things have I enjoyed in the past, but have not done lately?”

Make videos. Tell stories with pictures. Learn to draw. Make birdhouses. Paint birdhouses. Design a garden.

These are things I think about, but rarely have time for.

I realized I rarely have time, or make time, for fun, new things, or even fun, old things.

I read to relax. It is my favorite pastime. And, I write.

I started art journaling, but usually it is to help get stuff out of my head onto paper. It’s mostly therapeutic, but I do have fun. It is an activity I can get lost in.

But, “What else is there? What am I missing?”

I rarely do anything just for fun, with no purpose other than to play.

I scares me a little that I’ve forgotten how to play, to just have fun. It scares me to think I’ve allowed so little time to play in my life.

Then yesterday I got a glimpse of what having fun can be like again. I was working on a special project, and I did have a purpose, but in the midst of it all I got lost and had a great time.

I told a story. I played with words. I made myself laugh. For hours I was wrapped up in an imaginary world and I had a blast.

I haven’t done that kind of writing in a very long time.

I like to have a purpose. It helps me focus. But, I also need to remember to have some fun and to play.

Break it down. Take baby steps. This has worked in the past, why not now?

That’s where Michael Nobbs’ “Take the 20 Minutes a Day Challenge” comes in. He has the same philosophy. Twenty minutes a day? I can do that.

My challenge…I am going to write for fun. I am going to start writing stories again. I am going to engage my imagination and just let the words and stories spill out of me.

I’ll follow Michael’s guidelines…

Dedicated time:

Supplies: I only need a notebook and a pen.

No distractions: No Twitter, Hulu, phones calls, etc. (okay, I can do this.)

Public commitment: This blog post says it for me.

Time limit: 20-minutes a day, no more, no less.

Rewards: When the twenty minutes is up, I’ll take a break, relax an have a cup of tea.

Then, tomorrow I’ll do it again. And, the next day and the next.

Although this project is about having fun and playing it helps me to have a purpose. So I think I’ll make Fridays, “Fun Day” and share some of my 20-minute challenge results.

How about you? Will you take the 20-minute challenge?