Make a Memory With Me: my Movember challenge

Four years ago I lost a close friend to suicide. Receiving that news via a phone call was the most heartbreaking thing I’ve ever had to hear. Elliott meant so much to the people around him. His charm, humour and spontaneity touched me from the moment I met him, and have stayed with me throughout the years since he’s passed. I have found that although losing a loved one is devastating, their best bits can still be a gift that lifts you after they’re gone. 

Movember is an organisation changing the face of men’s health by tackling the three biggest issues they confront: mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer. Every November, people are encouraged to grow a moustache from scratch and raise money to support projects locally and globally. Lots of growers decide to take on challenges like running 5km a day too, or organising fundraising events to boost awareness and donations. I’ve participated in Movember for the last few years, but this time I wanted to set myself a challenge that directly relates to the cause and my personal connection to it.

Since losing Elliott, the thing I’ve wanted to do most is to share one more funny, open and thoughtful conversation with him. So I challenged myself to complete 30 walks with 30 different men, across the 30 days of November – taking a photo during each one to document my progress. The photos not only allowed me to share my moustache growth and who I’d walked with each day, but they also gave me an opportunity to turn the challenge into a lasting memory. This inspired me to create a Popsa Photo Book. Having a tangible record of my journey meant I could relive the highs and lows throughout the challenge once I’d reached the end. Now, no walk, chat or face can ever be forgotten, making the experience even more meaningful to me.

Capturing the month

I began the logistics of the challenge a week before November; reaching out to friends, colleagues, team mates and even friends of friends. I actually didn’t know 30 men, or at least 30 I could go on a walk with. So there was a lot of problem-solving when it came to assigning someone different to each day of the month. When the first walk rolled around, I only had 15 confirmed to join me.

Taking photos with each of the men was tricky. I’m not a natural photographer and because a number of the walks were after work, these had to be captured in the dark. I focused on finding the best lighting I could, getting our faces clearly in each shot and including an interesting background if possible. To help with the backgrounds in particular, I used a 0.5 camera lens, which was really useful as it allowed for more experimentation with angles. 

Before the challenge started, I had told myself to expect some surprises – especially doing the walks in London. These came in the form of bad weather, transport delays, park closures, late dropouts and more. Most of them were navigated by just sucking it up – walking in the rain isn’t actually all that bad. However, rearranging walks sometimes took multiple days to fix, depending on people’s availability. Once I’d reached day 20, these issues became increasingly difficult to overcome. I was getting tired, physically and socially, running out of people to ask and felt like I had no time in the day anymore. But I was spurred on by friends, family and an overwhelming amount of support on social media in response to the updates I posted each day.

Turning the photos into a Popsa Photo Book   

Once walk 30 was complete, I turned my attention to designing the Photo Book. As every photo was a selfie destined for social media, I decided that a Square Hardcover Photo Book would be the ideal format. Setting it up took no time at all. I uploaded my photos, chose a layout and shuffled the images into order from day one to 30. Along with the pictures I shared each day on socials, I included a “Top MOment” from each walk to give an interesting snippet into what we chatted about each day. So I chose to add several of the best throughout the book on text-only pages.

The end of a momentous journey

After 30 walks, chats and lovely chaps, Movember came to an end. Finishing the challenge, I felt relief, but also an overwhelming sense of achievement. l had all kinds of conversations – funny, thoughtful, wacky, inspiring – and I can confidently say I know something new about every single fella who joined me. The idea of fitting an activity like this into your week seems difficult, pointless or time consuming, but it can make such a big difference to someone’s mental health. Aside from the fundraising, I hope this challenge inspires other men to do it more often.

The final Photo Book looks brilliant. Looking back through it, I’m able to picture the steps taken and drop back into conversations shared. A month is a long time, especially when every day involves meeting someone for a walk – so the physical and emotional investment never really stopped. Having somewhere to store the experience that feels very personal provides a nice sense of closure. Knowing I can return to each moment whenever I want to means I never have to try to remember – it’s there to see forever.

In total, I raised over £800 for Movember. This is my highest tally ever by far, and I couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who donated and supported me along the way. All the money goes to supporting Movember’s amazing projects and changing the face of men’s mental health around the world. 

If you’d like to find out more about the Movember movement and its projects, you can visit the website here.

If you need to talk to someone, help is available. You can contact NHS 111 on 111 or Samaritans on 116 123 for free at any time to speak with someone immediately. Please remember, you’re never alone.