Blogging Challenge - Day Seven (and then she rested)

I started yesterday's post about bucket lists by introducing what might be a new concept to you - the idea of an unbucket list. The idea came from a friend who informed me that she never planned to try on, buy or wear a bathing suit ever again in her life. She had one other thing on her unbucket list - sleeping in a tent. 

I must admit I was intrigued by the idea of a list of things I never planned to do ever again in my lifetime. Imagine the possibilities. Now there are a lot of things I dislike doing that I can't put on such a list - for example, cleaning toilets. That is just one of a myriad of unpleasant household chores that can't be sworn off unless you can afford a cleaning service once a week.

On the other hand, as an adult I can choose to do or not do some things that I didn't have any choice about as a child. I could decide, for example, that I never want to eat broccoli ever again.

I also mentioned in yesterday's post that the older you get the fewer things you can realistically expect to accomplish before you die and any bucket list you make will have to take this into consideration. I guess you could add things you'd like to do but know you won't be able to do to your unbucket list (e.g. - I am never going to Bora Bora), but I don't think that is the purpose or pleasure of an unbucket list.

Rather than making a bucket list, I challenge you to make an unbucket list, and rejoice in the knowledge that there are some things you will never again have to do.  Come to think of it, that should free up a lot of your time to accomplish the things on your bucket list! I call that a "win-win", don't you?

Thanks for stopping by.

Blogging Challenge - Day Six

Last Spring I was having a conversation with a long-time friend and happened to mention that I had recently bought a bathing suit. My friend informed me that she never intended to buy a bathing suit ever again. In fact, she said that was one of the things on her "unbucket" list. I'd never heard of such a thing but I was intrigued by it.

Of course everyone has heard of a "bucket list" but come to think of it I don't recall if this concept originated with the movie by the same name or preceded it. Anyway, lots of people have started making lists of things they want to do, or places they want to visit before they die. Nobody likes the idea of getting older and realizing that you haven't accomplished all that you want to do before your life is over. 

The other impetus for creating a bucket list is the realization that as you get older your options shrink. For example, at a certain age you may realize that your dream of winning a beauty pageant or American Idol is just not going to happen. (They don't accept contestants over a certain age and you are way over a certain age.) Things that were still viable options in your youth just are not any longer. Or you may realize that you will never have enough money to own that beach house you always dreamed of, or travel to Bora Bora. Most likely you have accepted these limitations as simply the facts of life, but you might have experienced pangs of regret and real sorrow thinking about all the things you'll never get to do.

Even still, there are many things I'd like to do and many places I'd like to visit before I die. I've never made a written list of those things and I'm not sure I want to, probably because I realize that in the great scheme of things nothing on that list would be as important as spending time with grandchildren or teaching children's Sunday School or volunteering in my community. 

I consider every day a gift from God and another opportunity to be a better person than I was the day before.  So I don't think I'll ever feel the need to have a bucket list personally. Now an unbucket list - that's another story, one we'll explore tomorrow!

Thanks for stopping by.