My Bucket List

By recording your dreams and goals on paper, you set in motion the process of becoming the person you most want to be.

Mark Victore Hansen

Now that I am retiring, I am so excited with the prospect of having so much time on my hands to do everything I put off for years. So last night I spent some time creating a 'Bucket List' of items I want to accomplish. while I’m still able. Nothing major. My wild, daredevil days are over.  There will be no jumping into pools that over my head...fully clothed. No jumping from airplanes or climbing mountains. Traveling is out, as well.  At one time I used to dream of having a trailer home and traveling through every state, but that doesn't even interest me anymore. I am just so tired from all these years of work that all I really want is time to enjoy my home. So, without further ado, the following is what I came up with for my  'Bucket List'. 

I am going to learn how to: 

Build miniature fairy gardens and invite the fairies into my home.

Read tarot cards.  I have two beautiful decks sitting here that I've yet to touch because I have never had the time.

I plan to:

Read all the Harry Potter books.  Am I the only person on earth who hasn't read one of them...nor seen any of the movies?

Create a home with an inviting, loving atmosphere. And with that comes the job of de-cluttering.  I'm such a pack rat.  It's time to let some things go.

Go swimming in the ocean. Of course, that calls for putting on a bathing suit, but they make so many wonderfully long tops that perhaps no one will notice my belly hanging out.

Lose my belly.  

Spend lots of time in nature. I've a beautiful park in my neighborhood, and I am only 10 minutes from the ocean.

See of I still have it in me to ride the 'Tilt-a-Whirl, which has always been my favorite ride.

Play in the rain and have a snowball fight. 

Watch the sunrise and the sunset..both in the same day.

I plan to take classes in:

Ceramics.  I used to take classes when I was 20 years old, and I loved it.

Oil painting. I've always dreamed of creating a beautiful painting.

Nutrition for health.  I've already begun taking classes and hope to one day have a certificate.

I also plan to:

Write a poem. I can write plays, but not poems.  It's never too late.

Learn how to socialize and make friends. It's time that I stop being such a loner so I plan to join a senior center and enjoy meeting new people.

Revamp your wardrobe. Already started this one, as well.  No more work wardrobe for me.  Along with purchasing leisure wear, it is time to sort out the clothes I will no longer need and donate them.

Joining a  protest to protect something.  It's been almost 40 years since I have been in a protest of any sort.  I feel very strongly about protecting our environment and all that is a part of it.

Finish and print my family tree.  A few more ancestors to look into, then it will be ready to be printed.

On a personal note, I plan to: 

Release negative emotions and limiting beliefs. As much as I try to deny it, they are still there, only not as strongly as they once were.

Learn not to take what others do or say personally. I have a bad habit of taking things personally, like the time my co-workers were all invited to a sex toy party, and I wasn't.  It didn't occur to me at the time that they didn't invite me because they respected me, and  it also wasn't something I would really have enjoyed anyway. But I let my thoughts run with it and put myself into a lot of unnecessary heartache when I chose to believe they didn't invite me because they didn't like me.

Learn how to take compliments. If someone says I look nice, I can't just say 'thank you'.  No, I have to go into this song and dance about how old the skirt is or how much I had to do to get my hair style, etc.

Of course, this is not set in stone, and once I retire, I am sure it will change many times. Do you have a 'Bucket List'?

 It must be borne in mind that
the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in
not reaching your goal. The
tragedy lies in having no goal
to reach. It isn’t a calamity
to die with dreams unfulfilled,
but it is a calamity not to dream.
It is not a disgrace not to reach
the stars, but it is a disgrace
to have no stars to reach for.
Not failure, but low aim is sin.

Benjamin Mays