So I’ve been doing a bit more tags and challenges lately because I was randomly thinking about the old forum games/challenges I used to play back in middle school that would help me practice writing. A lot of these challenges can be found on Weheartit.com as well, so thankfully, if I don’t remember the parameters for a challenge, usually someone has a post dedicated to it over there.

This is one of those such challenges.

The “If I Had Nine Lives” Challenge was insanely fun for me and my old forum friends and I’m excited to see how my answers vary now that I’m older. This challenge is characterized by coming up with neat fictional lives that would have been fun to live so feel free to join in and complete this challenge as well as it can be a joyous day dream.

Life 1 ~ Sculpture

This life would have been characterized by long days spent molding clay and drawing up sketches of human anatomy. I’m kind of thinking this life would have occurred around the late 1400’s and early 1500’s (around the time of Leonardo Da Vinci’s work for reference). The Middle Ages were coming to a close as people were beginning to value books and education more and more and this life was probably right in the middle of it. They probably lived in a European city and enrolled in a artists/artisan’s school where they could train under artistic masters before coming one themselves.

Life 2 ~ Biologist

This gal lived during the Victorian Era on the English Countryside. She hand drew most of her theories and discoveries (fossils, plants/botany sketches, etc.). But due to the nature of this time period, she wasn’t recognized professionally as a biologist until later in life. The concept for this life is heavily inspired by the very real life of Beatrix Potter who was an amazing botanist and scientist who was never really recognized for her work due the fact that she was a woman. I am sure there were many similar stories to hers that occurred during this time.

Life 3 ~ Scottish Lady/Governess

Have I mentioned that I loved Scotland?? I really don’t know what time period I’d place this gal. I researched what was the time frame for the Scottish Monarchs and got quite a range. But besides that, that information was most likely in reference to the official Monarchs of Scotland. Lords, Ladies and Governesses of Scotland still exist to this day I believe. You just gotta own some land (and maybe a castle? I probably need to research the official requirements. I’m curios now).

Anyhow, what I can assure you about this lady is she lives in castle and was widowed young. She has a son who is currently far too young to take control of the estate. So until her son can take over, she will continue to head the castle and protect the family’s honor.

Life 4 ~ Fashion Designer

I have always loved the thought of designing my own fashion line (I mean, what girl hasn’t?). In high school I took to drawing fashion sketches and even though I haven’t drawn one in quite awhile, this life appeals to me quite a bit. This girl probably lived in the mid to late 1900’s, just after world war 2.

The fashion industry was final able to flourish again and this girl wanted in on the action. She lives in Paris (because why not?) and spends her days sketching and comparing fabrics for the fashion company she has the pleasure of working for. She drinks lots of teas and keeps company with about 3 cat back at her apartment. She probably marries later in life as she was guilty of focusing on her career more than anything in her early years.

Life 5 ~ Web Developer

Another fun fact about me, in high school, all my electives fell under computer coding and web design. It was something I was considering going into after high school, but I soon realized that I didn’t think this was the path cut out for me after I graduated and became infatuated with the biological sciences.

Buuuuut in my spare time I do enjoy coding dinky little programs for no apparent reason so its no wonder that I would design a past life based on this potential career.

This Web Developer lives in New York during the mid to late 1900’s. The Internet is now picking up speed and is becoming acknowledged as more than just a trend and she takes full advantage of that. She coded as a hobby at first, but now holds down a job at a corporate company, designing and keeping track of their online presence.

Life 6 ~ Children’s Book Author

Okay, it’s at this point you’re probably realizing that this list isn’t in chronological order. I tried at first but now I’ve stopped. So, that being said, this girl lived during the mid to late 1800’s, just when children’s books were becoming a thing. She lived in England was was a house wife who spent her spare time writing and drawing, at first for only her children, but then moved on to have her work published for others as well.

Life 7 ~ Astronomer

Ahhhh Astronomy. My forbidden career. This life is a cumulation of a life time of infatuation with the night sky. Why didn’t I pursue astronomy then, you might ask? Well the answer is plain and simple:

Math.

I’m only sort of kidding. When looking at the career path of a modern day astronomer, I saw many years of mathematics and physics ahead and I could not bring myself to commit to it in fear that it would destroy my current love for the stars.

But this girl isn’t a modern day astronomer. No, she got into the game early. Around the mid 1600’s to be exact, just after the marvelous observations of the famous astronomer Galileo. She went on to discover with her own homemade telescope, a few moons and stars, detailing their existence in her journals that she would lady reference when writing books on her work later in life.

Life 8 ~ Renaissance Restoration Artist

This is probably one of my favorite “lives”. The thought of carefully painting and restoring the grand works from the Renaissance era seems infatuating (at least until one gets a hand cramp).

This life spends her days restoring paintings upon church’s and cathedral’s walls, in an attempt to show tourists the former glory of these masterpieces. She’s married to a Historian who works on the more historical side of these projects as oppose to the actual restoration.

Life 9 ~ Current Life (college student/writer/biologist)

And finally, my current life, which began in the early 2000’s. This one is a little less cohesive than the others, thus far not being characterized by only one main career but I like it anyway. This gal spends her days drinking over-priced iced coffees, doing homework, going a little small town adventures with her friends, playing DnD on boring Saturdays, petting cats, and drawing.

She isn’t entirely sure where she’s headed yet but she knows its going to be good life when its all said and done.

And concludes The Nine Lives challenge! Again, feel free to participate if you want! See you in my next post!

~Brooke F.