A Challenge from Mr-Theorize-Everything

Good morning, good day, good afternoon, or even good evening considering I don’t exactly know when you will read this. I know that I had to keep my word when saying that I’d be sending you a challenge via Facebook, as you asked. I apologize. You don’t know what took me so long. Giving a challenge is not easy. It means that you have to give someone a task that they have to willingly do. Eventhough the challenge giver doesn’t take that seriously, but it’s still a challenge, a mission to accomplish; and not being able to accomplish it means a defeat. So, a challenge, more or less, can make a change to people’s lives. Then, after days of eating and sleeping (not thinking about the challenge at all), I’ve finally got one. By the time you finish reading all of this, I hope it would be something meaningful and useful for you.

On Thursday, May the 7^th 2015, you gave me a list. That list consists of challenges from your friends that were made for you. After reading that, honestly, I had to redefine the word ‘Challenge’ itself. Because some challenges, in my opinion, are so inappropriate. For instance, which part of ‘going to Singapore’ is considered a challenge? I mean, everybody has a willing to do it. If everybody does, then what makes it special? Exactly. If something is meant to be a challenge, it must be special, not only about the task, but also about the people themselves.

Secondly, you included ‘6-hour wedging’ and ‘carrot’ as challenges. Are they challenges, or tortures? Because I see no difference. If you want, I can make some good tortures that you won’t believe they exist. I got a degree in Torturology (this is the part where you should laugh). My point is, they’re not challenges. They’re simply things that bring physical and emotional pain for you. Eating uncooked carrot cannot cure that dislike, it just makes it worse. If you want a real challenge, try to find something that can bring meaning much more than the pain, so that when you have done it, you can remember the meaning, not merely the pain.

Thirdly, however, I found some things in the list that picked my interests. You can finish reading a book in one day, which is great (I’m not sure about your comprehension. LOL). Some also tell about your hobby and educational background. For instance, making a Christina Aguilera’s song cover is awesome. Travelling alone, by ship is exceptionally superb. Trying to get a cum laude is indeed a great challenge. These are the things that I could call exemplary.

Finally, we know what a good challenge is. It has to be special, meaningful, and exemplary. That’s why I have to think as hard as I can to find a challenge that will be beneficial for both you and me. Because my credibility is also at stake here. So, after days of thinking, this is my challenge for you:

“You have to do old things and new things you find useful in a much better way for 21 days.”

What does it mean? Okay. We know that you have some routine and/or usual activities you do every day, which what I call ‘The Old Things’. You also have some things you have never done before, that you know you should’ve done but you didn’t, and you find them useful for you in the future. That’s what I call ‘The New Things’. So, you have to do those things in a different and better way than you think you can do. For instance, if you usually cook a simple main course, try to cook a complicated one, like perhaps Rendang. The next day, try to cook a little bit more complicated one, like Capcai, et cetera. If you don’t love poetry, try to. If you always get defeated by your mood, win it. Try to do as many as you can. Do those things and make them documented as neat as possible. Keep it better in 21 days. Why 21 days? Well, psychologically speaking, human brain can make a habit by recognizing the activities pattern. That pattern is subconciously formed in 21 days.

Ms. Cordhitta, do you know why I offer you this challenge? It is because sometimes we see something inside us, but we don’t know what it really is. We can see a better version of us, but we can’t become it fully. We still follow our desire to just surrender. We want to become a better person, we all do. However, it appears that some people don’t really want to do the things even to make them better. I think this is where challenge gets its important role. It has been the nature of human to keep being challenged in order to survive and to evolve. Only the constantly challenged people will become those better persons.

Simply put, I challenge you to challenge yourself because I want you to change; not to be a different, but to be a better woman. The woman you want to be, not the woman people want you to be. To keep being challenged is perhaps the best thing we can get to change ourselves. That’s why we cannot spell C-H-A-L-L-E-N-G-E without saying C-H-A-N-G-E.

THANK YOU

P.S

You can learn Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Portuguese for free on Duolingo.com. It’s awesome. If you’re lucky, you can find my account: TeukuReza. Because I think it’s better if you can speak like the Eiffel while being in the Eiffel.