Do you have a Bucket List?

by StaceyMJHughes

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Guest Author today – Stacey Hughes! You’ve seen her here at Life, for instance before. Stacey has just started her own blog! Recently, she made a comment here that captured my imagination and I asked her to do a Guest Post on it. We’re going to have fun with this one whether or not you ever have made…..a bucket list!

If you want your life to be a magnificent story,
then begin by realizing that you are the author
and everyday you have the opportunity to write a new page.
Mark Houlahan

You hear the term often…in movies, from friends…the ‘bucket list’…but do you have one yourself? Have you thought about what important things you would like to complete in your lifetime? Of course you have, that is how you planned your education, your career path, etc. but have you taken the time to recognize the other things big or small that may warrant a place on your bucket list? That special trip you want to take, the most amazing comedian or singer you want to hear in person?

I just took my youngest daughter to see the movie “New Years Eve”.  One of the story lines has Michelle Pfeiffer’s character quitting her job, and using tickets to a special masquerade ball to coerce Zac Effron’s character to help her complete her Bucket list by midnight. She had lived her entire life as the shy, quiet wallflower missing out on all she wants to do.  Fed up, she takes drastic measures, and gives herself (and Effron) an immediate deadline.

This story made me realize, that every time I see a film, or read about it in a book, I intend to make a bucket list. I want a bucket list. I have thought a lot about it. What would I include, what DID I want to do, after all, in my life?

Well that is a HARD question!

I have been trying to complete this list (that I really WANT to create) for a couple of weeks now and I am no further ahead.  What really is so important to me that I want to include it in a permanent list? Profound things like I want to help build a house with Habitat for Humanity or I want to take my daughters and work at the local soup kitchen to help the less fortunate.  Or simple things like; I want to take a trip overseas.  I feel as though I have writers block!

I have decided to do a variety of bucket lists.  I am going to do a short term one (perhaps for the summer, or 2012), and then a life one with the bigger stuff (and yes, I think help build a house for Habitat for Humanity will get on that list).

Do you have a bucket list? How did you come up with it? How do you manage/timeline it?

photo credit: Or Hiltch

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Sabrina at MyMiBoSo 69 pts

I love this for what it sparks in me.

My goal is to find a balance with "doing" and "being" - that is, simply embracing the wonderful life I have created thus far without wanting for more, while pointing myself toward where I would like to be.

Of course this doesn't mean there can't be hopes, dreams, and goals...I suppose there just isn't any experience I would feel would fulfill me more than the ones I've already created thus far :).

Lori 1857 pts moderator

MyMiBoSo Hi Sabrina! balance with doing and being? Cool! I like the idea of being happy where you are while anticipating a future with more. What can you name from your past that was on your list and accomplished? What one thing on your dream list excites you now? Me? Okay, I'll go first - my trip to Greece from my past (ever alive in my heart!) and my best-selling novel which changes lives one life at a time in my future ;-) Your turn!

My latest conversation: Do You Budget?

Sabrina at MyMiBoSo 69 pts

Lori I can't wait to read your novel Lori!

Yes I have to agree that travel was on my list, and I'm so glad I created the opportunity to visit Viet Nam where my mom was born and raised.

Future excitement lies in the work I'll be doing as a holistic life coach, helping people reconnect to the balance in their lives!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Oh Sabrina, that sounds so fulfilling and very impressive! That is a wonderful life's work!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

MyMiBoSo This is a great thing to work on Sabrina....a balance. It's ironic isn't it...it's so easy (if we just put our minds to it) to be happy with what we have...and it makes life a lot easier than always striving for what we 'want' (or think we need)...so glad you stopped by LFI

ExpatDoctorMom 115 pts

Fun conversation!

I posted mine on my website: http://expatdoctormom.com/bucket-list/ So far, I divided it into short term/long term and fun. I will need to update the list as some of the things I have done (started guitar, my son chose piano instead but we go together to lessons :) ) Thanks for a kick in the "bucket" to get my list updated on those items I have accomplished as well as to try and accomplish some more.

Best,Rajka

Lori 1857 pts moderator

ExpatDoctorMom Hi Rajka! That's a great bucket list! I love how you subdivide it! You have some ambitious and fun aspirations! Creating a list like this is like creating a life in advance! Maybe we should get our children to create these lists while still young. I wonder - what do you think? Would it put pressure on them or open up a whole world of possibilities?

My latest conversation: Do You Budget?

ExpatDoctorMom 115 pts

Lori Thanks Lor! Love the idea of having our children create the lists! I have wanted to do a vision board with my kids about what they want in life/like etc. (Mine are 3 1/2 and 7 1/2) and could expand on this to include the bucket items!

I don't think it would put pressure on them at all! Thanks for the idea of making the lists with the kids.

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

This is a great idea Lori, I think it would depend on the parent .. being sure to be able to put the right emphasis on the list as opposed to too much importance! I like the idea , of getting children involved in this!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

ExpatDoctorMom Thanks for sharing Rajka! Do you think that you always re-fill the bucket (list) when you fulfil something on it? I think I do, but also I am the type that enjoys seeing a checked off list...so maybe I won't replace one for one :) hehe

ExpatDoctorMom 115 pts

StaceyMJHughes I too like crossing things off my list! I have thought about adding other things to the list as my interests change but haven't done it yet. Sounds like our lists can be never ending!

TheJackB 1503 pts

I have a long list of things that I need to do which is why I need to live to be a 1000 or I won't come close to having enough time to do them all.

My latest conversation: Does Your Blog Need A Logo?

Lori 1857 pts moderator

TheJackB Maybe you better have another life or two Jack! Believing in many lives can take the edge off when you think of all the things you'll never have time to do! LOL

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Hehe -I like this - it's good to have so many wonderful things that you want to accomplish...perhaps you can start combining them :)

TheJackB 1503 pts

StaceyMJHughes That I have certainly tried to do.

My latest conversation: Does Your Blog Need A Logo?

bdorman264 1935 pts

I'm hesitant to actually make a list because then it feels like a countdown to my last days.

If I had one, I have done the Habitat house and it was quite gratifying; I not only have one hole in one, but two; I have played golf at St Andrews in Scotland; I have been in the James Bond Casino in Monte Carlo; I have run a marathon; I have been to Cooperstown, etc, etc, etc. There is much more I still want to do, but if I didn't show up tomorrow I will feel I have already lived a very fulfilled, meaningful life.

If I took the time to make the list I would probably discover how much I have already done.

Interesting to think about though, thanks for sharing.

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Hi Bill...great to see you :) MIssed you early today! You've taken an interesting approach to it...make a list of what you've ALREADY completed! I like that idea...so often we concentrate on the 'what else do we need to get'...(we had a post about living in the now...hehe - now WHO wrote that? :S We definitely should concentrate

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

oops - I didn't finish>>> We need to concentrate on the good that we've done and are doing ! I like the reflective nature you've uncovered!

bdorman264 1935 pts

StaceyMJHughes 'cause I'm smart like that........:)....doh.....

Lori 1857 pts moderator

bdorman264 It's funny Bill, Stacey, but I thought this post would help me to accumulate a list yet the more I read what people say and the more I think about my own life, the more content I feel. I haven't run marathons or climbed mountains but I feel very happy with my life, with what's in it now, with what's percolating for the future. Like you Bill, I thought about it and realize how much I've already enjoyed in my life!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

That is awesome Lori! And you're right - I was thinking we would see lists from people of what is on their bucket lists (and we have a bit), but it seems that people are taking a variety of approaches to how they 'plan' or do not plan their future...I like it!

TashaGosselin 197 pts

I have a sort of weird personal take on the bucket list, and since we're all sharing, I'll tell you about it! I am not the sort of person you would refer to as a "thrill seeker". Im actually a "thrill-avoider" for the most part.

But when I was travelling a couple of summers ago, my friend and I came across a unique opportunity to go scuba diving in the mediterranean! I was pretty scared, but I pushed past it because I knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance! I was really happy that I did, and I loved the experience, so I decided that at least once a year I will do something that scares me! It is kind of like the opposite of the bucket list, (doing things I've never wanted to do instead of things I've always wanted to do!) but there is a lot of satisfaction of knowing that I've done something cool that I would have avoided out of fear in the past! Since the scuba experience, I've gone white-water rafting, and down-hill skiing!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Hi Tasha, I really like your take on the bucket list. it must give you great satisfaction to accomplish something that you were so fearful about? Wouldn't it be ironic if you then discovered a love of the fear thing (ie. Downhill-skiing), and it became a passion for you? Do you make a list of what you might like to do (from the list of no-way I'll do that)... what are some others you have on your list for the future?

Lori 1857 pts moderator

TashaGosselin Yikes! ;-) Kidding! I'm proud of you! This is really cool!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Actually Lori - you inadvertently bring up a good point...I touch briefly on it below when I mention to @Mark about sky-diving and being a parent.Does our choices for our bucket list change as our responsibilities in life changes (i.e. @Tasha - do you think you'll be as keen on the out-of-your-comfort-zone with your excursions if you become a parent)?I think our choices are always reflective of where we are in life. My list would have been quite different when I was in my early twenties, or with my daughter's father than they are now. We change and grow with those we are around...in a way - doesn't the people we surround ourselves with help define what goes on our bucket lists?

Lori 1857 pts moderator

StaceyMJHughesMarkTASHA Curiouser and curiouser ;-) Does a person have a different bucket list at different times in their lives. I think so! I think there is value in actually being able to cross off (achieve) things on our bucket lists. For me, for instance, having taken that wonderful trip to Greece with my daughter, which was a dream for such a long time, makes me feel happy and settled in some way. Sure I'd love to travel more, but I don't need to do that to fulfill anything. Something was filled with that trip, that experience. Is it like that for you Tasha having done the things you've done despite fear? What about you Mark, having already achieved a lifestyle change with a move to Costa Rica? I wonder which part of the bucket list process has the most value - anticipating the things you want to do, doing them, or savouring the experience. What do you guys think?

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Those are some great questions. WHERE is the value!? Hmmm - I think that is one to ponder...but off the top of my head, I (again) think that it might depend on what the achievement is... something simple, and it might be just having DONE it. If it's something quite involved, the entire process may be enjoyable and be part of the end result of the bucket list? hmmmm what do you guys think?

TashaGosselin 197 pts

LoriStaceyMJHughes I actually really did enjoy scuba and rafting enough that I would try them again. The skiing brought me such a wonderful feeling when I came to a stop at the end of the hill and felt the relief of having done it, and not fallen down or hurt myself at all, but Im not sure that I would want to do it again!

I don't know how many things are left for me that are scary, but not life-threateningly so, and I am still a ways off from becoming a parent so maybe I will be finished with my fear-factor bucket list by the time I become a mom! (although, I guess technically it would be terrifying enough to be a parent that it could count for every year after that! haha)

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

TashaGosselinLori You'll be amazed that when you do become a parent, the daily fear subsides, and then the you turn the fear on the child (them getting hurt, growing up in this world, etc...or that THEY will then try those scary things you've been trying (right Lori)? :)

Lori 1857 pts moderator

TashaGosselinStaceyMJHughes You will be a wonderful parent. No "fear factor" need apply!

My latest conversation: Are You Lucky?

SocialMediaDDS 529 pts

Hi StaceyMJHughes So nice to see you at Lori 's place! I have to admit that I am not a bucket list maker. I'm not exactly sure why. While reading your wonderful post, I was trying to figure out how I categorize the things that I want to do in life because, you are right, we all make some sort of plans for ourselves. It's kind of cliche but lately I have been referring to my goals as "visions" and I am focusing on making my visions happen. Could I swap words and call my visions a bucket list? Maybe. I think that what stops me from labeling my visions as part of a bucket list is the same thing that stops me from making New Year's resolutions...I feel that inherent in those kinds of lists is potential failure to accomplish the lists or resolutions. (boy do I sound like a Debbie Downer here....I don't mean to be at all so I am sorry)

So, here is part of my vision for my life (bucket list)....Travel all or most of North America in our RV. Incorporate my passion for photography in my travels and put together a photo journal. I'd love to do a collaborative something with my son and daughter but, I have no idea as to what that collaborative piece may be....it is just a vague project in my head right now, the purpose of which is to create a special focus that my adult children and I can call our own.

Thank you Stacey for getting me to really think about this and about the semantics involved!! Great post!

Claudia

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Thanks Claudia, I like what you're saying (and I didn't see it as being a debbie downer at all), you're right - we are always so quick to label things? Is that our society? (I certainly see that with the labelling of kids with ADHD/ADD) - but THAT is another post (right Lori - - a society that needs EVERYTHING labeled for it's own little corner.).I love your idea of photo journeying (and am on a mission right now of my own, to move away from 'scrapbooking' my photos, to move of an album of stories through word & photos).How old are your children? I like the idea of doing something collaboratively with them! I'd like to hear more about your thoughts on this!

SocialMediaDDS 529 pts

StaceyMJHughes My "kids" are 30 and 28 now. I haven't got a clear idea as to our "project" but my first inclination is that it will be a combination of photography and writing. We'll see if this pans out...because I don't want to put too much expectation in this happening, it is better that it stays as a vision that may or may not come to fruition rather than be put on a bucket list that may create more pressure to make it happen? Maybe? Also, I am intrigued by what Lori bdorman264 and others have said about not making bucket lists and in reviewing their lives, they realize that they are happy with what they have accomplished....so...I wonder if younger people are more apt to make bucket lists maybe because of idealism or less life experiences? I'm pretty happy with my life experiences so far as well...all of the rest of the experiences that I get to enjoy will just be part of the frosting on the cake!!!

Lori 1857 pts moderator

SocialMediaDDSbdorman264 That sounds like fun Claudia! It's fun to have things to look forward to and it's fun to have things to look back on that were wonderful and amazing! Is this what "middle age" is? LOL Yikes! I do count myself very fortunate, though, to have both. I never really thought about it until this post! Thanks StaceyMJHughes !

TheJackB 1503 pts

SocialMediaDDSStaceyMJHughesLoribdorman264 Claudia, I am a hair younger you and a chunk older than your kids which places me smack in the middle.

I have had enough life experience to know what I want to do and what I don't. I am still young enough to have some "more serious" physical goals on my list.

That is not to say that we can't or won't have them when we are older than I am but I know that I still recover faster now and have less trouble training for some of these things than I will in the future.

it does apply a certain amount of pressure to try and do them sooner but I am ok with that.

When I look back at my life I have very few regrets but those that exist are substantial so my goal/hope is to try not to add to those.

My latest conversation: Does Your Blog Need A Logo?

SocialMediaDDS 529 pts

TheJackBStaceyMJHughesLoribdorman264 LOL....a "hair" younger....bless you Jack....xo..

Lori 1857 pts moderator

SocialMediaDDSTheJackBStaceyMJHughesbdorman264 A hair younger than both of us Claudia! LOL

TheJackB 1503 pts

LoriSocialMediaDDSStaceyMJHughesbdorman264 According to my daughter, when I turn 51 I might not be able to walk so well so I need to exercise hard now.

Can't argue with the wisdom of a 7.5 year-old so I am doing what she says. ;)

My latest conversation: Does Your Blog Need A Logo?

SocialMediaDDS 529 pts

TheJackBLoriStaceyMJHughesbdorman264 Dang...THAT explains why I stumble frequently...

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Claudia, That is an interesting point...do young people make lists to plan their utopia, while people who have 'lived' (I refuse to say old :) hehe)...perfer to enjoy/re-live and rejoice what they are and have accomplished.

Hajra 319 pts

Hey Stacey,

I don't have a bucket list written somewhere but yes, since I have watched the movie The Bucket List I have one in my head and it just seems to be growing everyday! My friends actually joke that I have a bucket list that is two buckets long. But what's wrong in having loads of dreams! :) So here goes (P.S. Feel free to doze off in between; I just have a lot to say always!)

Visiting Egypt. I am fascinated by pyramids and that is something which I have to visit someday.

Writing a book. Yes, back to back. And it better be a bestseller.

Learning rock climbing (yes, I have been to your blog and nit just reminded me!) I haven't been very athletic but I would love to climb like that someday!

Taste all the desserts existing. (I will burn the calories by rock climbing)

Speaking a new language (other than English, Hindi and Arabic). I still haven't got around to learning a new language!

That are the highlights; if I go on, people might throw stones at my comment! I don't have a timeline, I think I will just get around to doing things I would always love to and keep adding more when one is checked off the list!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

Hi Hajra, I LIKE it! You're right - what's wrong with having loads of dreams, wants and wishes! I think that more is better! That way there is always something to strive for...big and small!WOOHOO!! Rock climbing is incredible. I find the movement on the rock to be peaceful and makes you so appreciate nature and your surroundings! Maybe we'll take in some climbing together sometime!I think that should be 'learn ANOTHER new language'. :)I like that you want to play to add more after you check some off. Do you choose this because you don't want the bucket list to become overwhelming or to seem daunting with too many things on it? :)

Hajra 319 pts

StaceyMJHughes Oh no... it is definitely speaking a new language. Knowing myself, I might learn it and then that's it... I want to speak only it for a few days...forget that I know any other language .. I want to speak it real well ;)

I have to learn rock climbing some day! Yup, maybe we will! :)

Not daunting, it is just that I don't want to stop dreaming and hoping!

Also, checking off makes sure that there is something I am proud of; something I accomplished!

StaceyMJHughes 441 pts

I am a checker offer (hehe, thus my daily to-do list), I feel a sense of accomplishment when I can see all those check-marks.That is awesome that when you dedicate yourself to trying something new (like a new language) that you immerse yourself in it. That is the best way for sure to practice and keep the language! Hmmm - how about those around you? Do they end up learning some of your new language :)

Hajra 319 pts

StaceyMJHughes I don't think so; for most part I just find hard trying to learn the language myself... forget others following the plan!

Lori 1857 pts moderator

Hajra "And it better be a bestseller." ;-) Of COURSE it had better be! What's wrong with a list "two buckets long"!? Reading your comment made me feel all warm inside Hajra!

Hajra 319 pts

Lori I know... whats wrong with that! ;) Maybe I talk too much about it! Have you watched the move Bucket List?

Lori 1857 pts moderator

Hajra I haven't watched it, no. I tend to stay away from movies with sad endings and though I know this one will be funny throughout, a movie called The Bucket List will end badly ;-) Have you seen it? And no, you don't talk too much.

Hajra 319 pts

Lori Yup, have seen it and absolutely love it! A movie with Jack Nicholson AND Morgan Freeman is something you don't want to miss. Especially if it has a sad ending. The ending is sad, but it doesn't lave you sad... watch it this weekend and then come thank me ;)

You should meet me to see how much I talk. My dad says that speaking less should be on my bucket list!



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