Listing Life

This is a descriptive reasoning for spending time writing a list of the thing that you want to do in your life giving a road map when you have reached a stop gap in decision making.

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman find in The Bucket List that life is an impermanent adventure.  Faced with the realization of their own impending and unstoppable demise Morgan Freeman begins to reflect upon all the adventures he was never able to complete, in a sense he was mentally traveling The Road Not Taken in his life.

The movie reminds us that as long as we are still breathing life is a wonderful gift that we should take as an adventure.  Living each and every minute to the fullest of our ability.  These adventures are ours to decide and live and are in no way dictated by anyone we know; they are special and unique to each individual.
Therefore, it is up to each of us individually to make our own list of the things we want to do within our lives; not discounting those things we have already completed.  I have two lists in working process.  My first list is those things that I have a desire to explore and the second is those things I have already completed that have made me who I am today and headed me towards the epitaph that will make me remembered by those who pass my rock in the future. 

The biggest question I have received as I have discussed this operation of making the LIST  is simply  "How do I go about making a list when I don't really know if I will ever be able to do any of the things I would like to?"   Well, simply enough, the list is just a guideline for future reference; do not ever take the list as a must---that takes away from the adventure and the fun.  Guidelines are exactly that--maps that offer direction when we have had to pull over and seek it.

To begin with make the list a Family Affair; get the kids involved in making their own lists, husband, aunts, uncles, etc.  Make it a game and remember that two heads are better than one because an idea might just spark a fire within our desires that we never recognized previously. Taking into consideration that you are probably not a millionaire having unlimited funds to do all the things they do in the movies be prepared to adjust and re-adjust and re-adjust once again and continuously your own personal Bucket List many times -- BUT! NEVER NEVER NEVER give up on your dreams because there is, while you are breathing, at least a slim chance and that beats no chance at all.

Lets Begin!!  Get a notebook and an ink pen that makes you feel good when you write with it.  Make a list of absolutely everything that you have done in your life regardless of how trivial it may seem (what you have done may end up on another's list because they never thought of it before).  Then get yourself a second notebook of a different color and  begin the list of all the things that you would like to try; regardless if it seems feasible or not, possible or not, safe or not, etc.  This starter list is to get your mind in "Thinking Mode", once there we can organize later.  

Keep this list growing with those things you see on television and in movies that make your mind go "Oh I so wanna do that", even if it scares you.  Just because you put it on your list does not mean you MUST do it ~ this is just a map.  One great thing about this list is that there are absolutely positively NO WRONG ANSWERS!! Whatever you put on your list belongs to you regardless of the opinions of others.  You will have those who tell you it is a bad idea; okay so maybe it is, who cares.  
The benefits of a Bucket List are good as well.  Bored Teenagers!! When they start asking for things to do have them get out their lists, get out yours, compare and set a family adventure for the day.  Facing those empty nest  feelings?  When you are down, get out your list and adventure. 

These are your long lists (the map of the whole USA); but on travels you just need a local map to get you through.  Make a list of things from your big list that can be done on short notice, locally, by yourself, with close friends, etc.  Hang this list on the fridge with a pen handy to add to it.  Allow others to add to your list, they might just have some wonderful ideas.  Just because it is on the list does not mean you have to follow it to the letter; how often have you taken every single road that is on your local map?

To get you started I have prepared a short list from my own Personal List.  Here We Go!!

1. See every John Wayne movie ever made. (In Process)   

2. Make another person smile every day. (In Process)

3. Ride/Drive a Trike (have half of this one)   

4. Ride/Drive a Motorcycle (having trouble finding a loaner :))

5. Dance in the Rain  (where others can see)                                 

6. Play in the Puddles with Grandchildren
7. Swim in the Ocean (Completed, sorta)       

8. Visit all 48 attached states

9. Spend a summer seeing oddity tourist attractions (Like the Worlds largest rocker)

10. Go Fly fishing in Montana

11. Learn to Fly Fish

12. See the Philharmonic Symphony

13. Study Yoga

14. Obtain my Master's Degree (In Process)

15. Start my own business (In Process)

16. Find my Center

17. Swim in the Great Lakes

18. Drive Route 66 from one end to the other and back again

19. Hot Air Balloon ride at Dusk

20. Help someone find their way to writing and living their own Bucket List

There you have it ~ my Fridge List ~ and it changes regularly as I complete items and add new; usually daily, sometimes hourly.  One thing is for sure, sharing experiences in life makes for expanded ideas as well as greater memories.  This is why I say "share your list" with friends and family.  Who cares if they don't support you, you know like you know like you know that you are going to live an adventurous life, live it in new adventures. 

Joy of our experiences is increased when we share that joy with another because our joy increases as their's increases which in turn increases our more; this has exponential potential for joy. 

  

Author's Note

Disclaimer: The previous words are for informational and entertainment purposes only. I am not a license anything (yet) just a 48 year old student of life following the yellow brick road to happyness working with what I have available to me at the time of the adventure.

Reviews

[Shelley Holt-Lowrey]

Well I'll be! A woman after my own age. Love this simple idea. It really is simple isn't it. Know your joy and go forth.

Thank you for a nice, kindly writ and soulful read.
Shelley

[Constance Payne]

Thank You. I appreciate all reads.