When I was 14 years old, I was flipping through a magazine and came across a bucket list that was one of the advertisements. As I sat there reading it, I was fascinated by the things they had put down and became mesmerized with making some of those goals my own. I decided it would be a good time to write my own bucket list, and so I did. I sat there and made a bulleted list of 37 things I want to do with my life, and the list is continuously growing, even to this day. There are a lot of reasons why I wrote that list the way I did, and it is for those same reasons that I encourage everyone to write his or her own.
First off, it is a way to get our goals down on paper. Every aspiration that I have, the type of person I want to be and the people I want to meet are all on that list. Every time I see a place I want to travel to, like Machu Picchu, or an activity I want to do, like scuba diving, I make sure to put it on my list and preserve it as a goal and a dream to complete something out of my comfort zone. It is a way for me to break away from my everyday routine and come to the realization that there are so many things to be accomplished in the world and so many things to try while I can.
Secondly, I am inspired by the things I want to do. As I sit here struggling through the mass amounts of work I have due for school this week, I sometimes flip to my bucket list for reassurance. It reassures me that tough times will always end, and that there are greater things that lie ahead in the future. The top thing on my bucket list is to see the Northern Lights, and I know that, one day, through all the stress and pressure I may feel at this moment in time, I'll be able to realize that goal. Looking at my bucket list motivates me to work hard in everything I do so that I may be able to realize and appreciate my dreams when the time comes.
Finally, a necessary sense of accomplishment is felt when you get to cross something off. A bucket list isn't just for places you want to visit or things you want to do — it is a list of attributes that make you who you are. Some of my bucket list tasks involve traveling to places like Yosemite or the Redwood Forest, but others involve things like doing a selfless deed, not swearing for 10 days, or making a promise to myself to always be there for my friends and family. My bucket list is a challenge to myself to be a better person and to go after all of the things I want to achieve and accomplish in my lifetime. The sense of accomplishment I feel when I get to cross something off is indescribable, because it is an indication that I am one step closer to being my best self, realizing my goals, and living my life to the fullest through all the things I hope to accomplish.
