This past Thursday, a special event occurred. The new “Before I Die” board was unveiled by Sewanee’s SGA, and students were encouraged to contribute their dreams and goals on a big black board on the path in between Stirling’s and the BC (a path that is also called Narnia). But where did this sort of bucket list board originate?
For the past few years, I have been familiar with this idea of a “Before I Die” board since there is a huge one present in Downtown Asheville right next to my favorite coffee shop. I always figured it was just one of Asheville’s quirks, but little did I know that Asheville was participating in something much bigger.
In 2011, an artist in New Orleans named Candy Chang lost someone very dear to her and needed a way to express her feelings. She painted a wall on an abandoned house in her neighborhood with chalkboard paint and stenciled the letters “Before I die I want to____”. She did this as a way of creating an anonymous space where she could “restore her perspective and share intimately with neighbors while remaining an introvert” (check out the full story here). Any person who walked by was able to simply share their life dreams with a piece of chalk. She was not sure what to expect from the experiment, but the next day, the wall was full. Ever since, the project has expanded to not only other cities, but even other countries, where the board has been made in other languages.
While many things that people write may be absurd or even inappropriate, this kind of project can inspire many people to reflect on their lives and their ambitions. One of the best things written on that first wall according to the artist was “Before I die, I want to be completely myself.”
If you want to hear the original artist talk about her inspiration behind the wall, check out her TED talk!
“It’s about knowing you’re not alone.”
In the few days that the Before I Die board has been present on Sewanee’s campus, people have expressed themselves both jokingly and inspirationally. But that is what college is about. It involves learning about yourself while also knowing you do not need to take life too seriously yet.
Some of the funniest (yet appropriate) things that have been written are the following…
- “Before I die, I want to ride the pub tiger (RIP)”
- “Before I die, I want to steal this sign” (FYI, you can make your own here)
- “Before I die, I want to be Scott Gallimore” (looks like someone is a big fan!)
While this sign will probably continue to have funny comments, some of the things people have written so far are very inspiring…
- “Before I die, I want to marry my best friend”
- “[After] I die, I want to meet God”
- “Before I die, I want to hop on a train and go somewhere far”
- “Before I die, I want to hike the A.T.”
- “Before I die, I want to be happy”
- “Before I die, I want to have children”
I hope you will be encouraged to go by the sign sometime this week and contribute to this great sign that SGA has brought to this campus! Who knew that one artist’s desire for expression would grow to be something so inspiring to so many?