Dreams, Goals, Bucket Lists...no matter what you call them it seems like the New Year gets us thinking about where we want to go and the time we wasted not getting there the past year. I will have to be the first to admit the 2012 was not a stellar year for me personally. It wasn't terrible. Some good things happened. I am thankful, that for the most part, my family and friends found love, health, happiness and employment a constant throughout the year. For Jim and I our biggest achievement would be adopting our new found LOVE a Schnauzer named Fritz. He has brought many smiles and warm fuzzies to our house since he was adopted in February and I look forward to us all growing old together.
But in hindsight if I had to look back and title 2012...well it just kind of felt like SURVIVAL and for 2013 I want MORE. Somewhere along the way, about early summer, I lost sight of my balance and never fully recovered it. I spent days in a funk and some how settled for mediocre. Feeling most days like I was giving just enough to go through the motions, not escaping responsibilities but not going above and beyond in my own achievements and well just plain letting some areas ride like the wind! If I had to pick a metaphor it would be the pace car, (OK maybe a pace car with one of those temporary donut tires beating out an imbalanced rhythm of ka-thump, ka-thump, ka-thump) ...not IDEAL, not EXCITING, not fully LIVING!
So onward and upward as they say. 2013 gives us a blank slate to start anew. A 365 page book just waiting to be written. So, as I begin working on putting my goals on paper I thought I would start with the bucket list. I'm going to call this my Mid Life Bucket List because I hope that my bucket will be emptied and filled many times in the years to come. They are a long way from SMART GOALS just the crib notes for me to further explore the Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timeliness of this very personal list. Many will not be a walk in the park (although that is on the list.) Some will be obtained in 2013 and others will take longer to plan, save, digest and work up the courage to achieve. But the VERY first step towards any goal is to DREAM it, second is to WRITE it and third is to SHARE it. So here they go.....
2) WORRY less
3) Find time to PLAY
4) Send Thank You notes
5) Take long walks
6) Learn the art of meditation or at least the art of being STILL with myself
7) Be spiritual
8) Volunteer and be named to a board
9) Spend more quality time with Friends & Family
10) Meet new Friends
11) Re-kindle the love and clarity for my career, or is there another passion calling
12) LIVE a healthier lifestyle
13) GIVE more with time, money and kindness
14) Make someone SMILE everyday
15) Pay for a Pet adoption on Valentine's Day (give a gift of unconditional love)
16) Be CREATIVE everyday
17) Illustrate Jim's poem the Sparrow and the Cricket and publish
18) Plan a trip to Europe
19) Take a long road trip
20) SWIM
21) Walk a 5k then Run a 5k
22) Be Confident in actions and achievements
23) Build my Network
24) Find those 5 friends in my life that will be honest & tell me what I need to hear
25) Create a piece of art to be sold at auction
26) Re-Decorate
27) Write
28) Spend TIME wisely
29) Wear a fancy dress and accept an award
30) Kiss under the stars on NYE
31) Learn a new language
32) Take more photos
33) Find a program to reduce weight or explore GB surgery
34) Reduce Debt (and its burden of worry, see #2)
35) Be better...(wife, mom, daughter, sister, boss, friend...)
36) Make a pie from scratch
37) Tell someone you admire them and why
38) Go Fast
39) Slow Down
40) Sing and Dance with confidence
41) Find time to practice the skills you want to most achieve
42) Be the BEST at something
43) Visit a place I have never been
44) Talk to strangers
45) Read the classics
46) Don't judge (unless it's a contest)
47) Design a piece of fashion from start to completion
48) Learn to crochet
49) Teach a class
50) Be a leader
51) Embrace change
52) Keep adding to my bucket list
There it is... to borrow a few words from EE Cummins "here it is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life.." More precise my life! I would love to hear what's on your list for 2013. Please comment, advise, cheer and join me where you see fit. As I work closer through some of the details and as I hit some highs and lows I will check in on this blog. And a Happy New Year to YOU...remember the FUTURE is Yours... now go get it!
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