Bucket List

For the most part of my life, I never had time for a bucket list.  Who has time to dream about those far off fancies when you are struggling to raise a family, work a full time job, and maintain a home.  It really isn't in the cards.....either time or money wise.

But now, now that I am older, I think about the things that I would like to do: travel to far off places, experience new things, discover things I have never dreamed of.  Rather than checking things off my list, I seem to be adding to it.  Do you think that is going to be a problem?  Soon it will look like a roll of toilet paper.  Long and tenuous.  I don't know that I have enough time to do it all.

What does a person put on their list?  I know a couple of "oldies" that jumped out of airplanes.  No, I don't think so.  I'd like to advance into old age in one piece "thank you very much".  Now a zip line, that I might consider.  There are those who take "big" trips to foreign countries.  I could see me doing some of that.  Or they sell their home and live a vagabond life in a travel trailer.  A little of that would be good too, but I think I would want to return to a permanent address.

Being married to someone who has not much interest in exploring these options, often my dreams are met with frustration.  But non-the-less, I will attempt to fulfill some of the things on my endless list while I am still upright.  On my short list I want to ride horseback on the beach, cruise the Hawaiian Islands, travel to Israel, take a riverboat ride down the Mississippi.  Not terribly grandiose things, but still dreams.

But most of the things on my list are much easier to attain.  I want to see my grandchildren grow up.  I want to be an integral part of their lives. I want to explore and enjoy new things.  I want to try my hand at things that I never had the courage to do when I was younger, like being a Christian speaker or publishing a novel.  I want to continue to teach the Bible and watch my student's hearts and eyes be opened to a new understanding of the scripture.  I can do all of those things easily.

Somehow I find it a little sad that we need to have "bucket lists".  Shouldn't we live life to the fullest each and every day?  I understand that early in life we don't have the money to do "big" things, and then we have families and that can put a cramp in your style sometimes.  And there is always the career to which we devote much of our adult lives.  These things are all very important.  I guess it is when we retire that we realize that some of our dreams were not fulfilled.  Or maybe we just have more time, and hopefully finances, to enjoy more extravagant things.

Really, in the end, will I feel unhappy or unfulfilled if I don't get to travel, or learn to paint, or write the great American novel?  Maybe a little.  Each day should be filled with things that give us joy, satisfaction, and happiness.    Those things are easily found in friends, family, service to others, neighborliness or simply taking time to enjoy the seasons, the garden, the abundance of life around us everywhere.

So I may rethink my bucket list a little bit.  Perhaps I need to put those more meaningful things a little higher on the list and yet still plan for the big dream one day.  What about you?  Do you have unfulfilled dreams?  Perhaps now is the time to begin to explore what is really important.  Are you living every day to the fullest?  Let's get our priorities in order: family, friends, service to others, a relationship with our creator . . . none of which cost us anything but a little time.  But the rewards will be satisfying and fill us with joy.  Is there more than that?

In this season of Thanksgiving, remember to give thanks for all you have and look forward to each day with a "attitude of gratitude".  Everything, big or small, is worthy of a "Thank You" to Jehovah Jireh, our God and provider.

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

Just Writin' on the River Road