The film The Bucket List featuring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson highlighted to me the importance of being able to look back on your life with no regrets, but I was thinking … why wait until you are on your last home run to come up with a list of things to achieve before you kick the bucket?? Enter, the Life List.
Just after my 29th birthday, I wrote a list for myself of the 30 things I wanted to achieve before I turned 30. A lot, looking back, were totally unrealistic … I mean, how likely is it that I could visit the Titanic in a submarine?! However, I thought it would be an interesting and slightly more personal article to highlight what I want to be achieving in my 30s, particularly as this month I celebrated my 30th birthday.
First up though, here are some of my achievements from my 20s to remind myself (more than anyone else) what it is that I have accomplished….
Received my Masters in Geoscience with First Class Honours
Bought a house….and a car!
Travelled by myself (and had a me-cation)
Built up my piano teaching
Mentored
Progressed my career
Learnt new skills including ukulele and crochet
Entered a songwriting contest and received Highly Commended for the entries
Sang and performed in a choir concert
Right, so here goes my rather personal list of 30 things to achieve in my 30s (in no particular order).
Run a successful business. I have always dreamed of owning my own business, so it makes the list
Write a book. I started writing a book while at uni and I still need to finish it, along with the 10 other plot lines I've written since.
Live in another country. Enough said. I need regular sunshine people!
Complete and release my music to the world. Having written music for the last 10 years, I think that it’s about time that I just shared it with the world.
Fall in love and be in a committed relationship. With all of my achievements in my 20s, I am yet to fall in love. This will be the decade!
Grow my own food. Always important to be self-sufficient and know where your food comes from.
Volunteer for a cause. There are so many worthy causes in the world and it is so important for each and every one of us to do our bit.
Take care of myself and my health. I tend to put others before me and I don’t really look after myself properly, so now’s the time.
Travel some more. Well this is a travel blog!
Go to Venice for Carnival. I love Venice and have visited in nearly every season, but I am yet to go to Carnevale.
Attend a white tie event in Vienna. How wonderful to Waltz the evening away in Vienna.
Read a book a week. I am a veritable book worm but as I can’t stop reading the book until it is finished I limit myself to only reading while on holiday.
Start to forgive myself.
Take up a new sport (e.g. archery or rock climbing).
Cook more and explore new flavours and techniques. Expect more recipes to make their way to the blog.
Enter the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. I've always wanted to see one of my photos all stunning and backlit on that wall.
Climb Chaberton and explore Monti della Luna more. Most people won’t know where this is. I have been visiting my family in the mountains since I was born and I am yet to climb the stunning Chaberton mountain just shy of 3,200m.
Visit the Wonders of the World. I am cheating slightly with having this as only one line item, but hey you can't blame me right.
See the Aurora Borealis (or Australialis). I had planned to do this before I turned 30, but there is still time in the next decade.
Get back to my drawing and art. Life is full of colour.
Try Krav Maga and learn self-defence. Always been an interest of mine to learn some form of self defence.
Improve my German. ……and increase the number of languages I can order a beer in....
Renew my first aid training. Luck favours the prepared so the saying goes.
Be more adventurous. Maybe I should buy a same-day plane ticket to another country, or live in the wilderness for a month... Either way, adventure is the key.
Visit every continent and continue adding to my visited country list. So many places to visit, so little time.
Drove cattle on horseback. Not sure why this makes the list (or any list) but I have always found it pretty cool. Hopefully I don't end up walking around like a John Wayne after a week sitting on a horse.
Take part in a few global festivals. La Tomatina in Spain, Holi in India, Festival of Light in Thailand and Oktoberfest in Germany spring to mind as a starting point.
Connect with nature more and have a regular digital detox. We are always so connected to our phones and I know I am guilty of that.
See a volcano in action (from a safe distance). As a geologist and volcanologist in training I love volcanoes, so a live volcano viewing shouldn't come as a surprise.
See more of nature first-hand. This is so broad, but how can I pick between seeing whales on migration, turtles nesting in Cape Verde or tigers in India?
Here’s to being 30, flirty and fabulous! Anything you think I should think to add to the list or should get an honourable mention?