My Bucket list for Life

Ever since I turned thirty, I’ve been starting to think about all the things I want to do in my lifetime and how it feels like there’s such little time to do them.  Hopefully, I have many more years left on this planet, and I better because here’s my bucket list of things I want to accomplish in my lifetime.

1. Spend one month each year in a different state – I put this one first, because I’m hoping it’s the closest to coming true.  With my job, I’m blessed with an off season, however, that off season in Minnesota tends to be one thing- a cold tundra.  I love skiing, ice skating, sledding, and a lot of winter activities- I excel at snuggling on the couch under all the blankets – but I would love to escape the cold for a month each year and explore a different state.  We would have to drive – I’m not leaving Zelda behind, but renting a place for a month somewhere in Colorado, Portland, or California sounds pretty magical.  Anywhere with mountains and water will do!

2. Learn how to knit- no explanation needed, this will happen.

3. Become one of Rangefinder’s 30 Rising Wedding Photography Stars–  As I’ve developed as a photographer, my work is morphing into what I’ve always wanted it to be- more artistic, more dramatic, and challenging traditional photography.  I’m hoping in the next couple years, I’ll feel like I’m at a point to at least get some attention and be nominated.  If I ever win this award, I will die happy.  This is my ultimate dream right here.

4.  Learn how to play the harmonium.  Harmonium’s are so bad ass! I love a yoga class that ends with the teacher playing one.  I’ve looked at them online, and was classically trained in piano.  I can still read music so chances seem good with this happening sooner than later.

5.  Become a Reiki Master- Reiki is a technique that heals tunes one’s energy.   A reiki master can read one’s chakras and aura then use the universe’s energy to help align anything that might be off.  It sounds like a bunch of bully at first, but man, if you have had it done, it works wonders.  I will literally shift how you feel and when you are dealing with some dark stuff, it can be extremely beneficial for your mental health.  I’m studying to be a reiki master right now, but it’s going to be a slow process for me.  It will  me many  years to develop the skill of reading other’s energy then helping to heal others.  I need to practice on people, so if you are at all interested, drop me a line!

6.  Be a mom- yes, I said it.  I never wanted to be a mom until this last year.  I want to be a mom and I’m also super scared.  I heard that sounds about right.

7.  Sit 2 more 10 day courses and serve a full course.  I practice a style of meditation called Vipassana- if you haven’t heard of it, I’ll link a few blog posts about it at the end, but it has changed my life.  I’ve sat one 10 day course in silence and a bunch of shorter ones, but I would like to sit two more 10 day courses and serve a full 10.  I don’t know when or how this will happen, but it’s on my list!

8. Make my own clothes- I have an awesome sewing machine and used to sew all the time in high school.  Life’s a little busy for me to keep this hobby, but one day I would love to get back into it and learn how to make my own clothes.

9.  Get certified in Ayurveyda– if you can’t tell by now, I’m fascinated by energy.  Ayurveda is like a sister science to yoga and focuses on the three doshas.  According to this science, all of us are composed of three energies- pitta which is warm and fiery, vatta which is cold, light, and airy, and kapha which is heavy, wet, and earthbound.  We each have a unique combination of all these.  I’m about half pitta (I’m a leo and Italian so I’m a fireball) with the other half mostly vatta with just a tiny slice of kapha.  You can take a dosha quiz online if you want to know your makeup.  What I love about this science is that you can use nutrition, essential oils, movements, and so much more to balance your energy so if you are feeling really firey- you can balance out and calm down and visa versa.  Sounds neat, huh?

10.  Write a book- Alright, alright, you may think this is cliche, but I really want to write about something I’m passionate about.  In college, I did a lot of creative writing and poetry, but I would really to like to write a book that helps translate some of the easter philosophies I’ve studied to everyday western life.  To be continued….

11. Eat deep dish pizza and cheese whenever I want to- Don’t get me wrong, I can eat a deep dish pizza right now, but I’m talking about healing my gut.  Maybe I should rephrase- I would like to eat a deep dish pizza and live to tell about it the next day.  I’m working with different supplements and recipes all the time to get my gut in check, and it may never be perfect, but I’m allergic to dairy and I’m hoping in the next 10 years there will be something I can take to cure me of food allergies!

There’s a lot of goals up there- and I really really hope to achieve all of them.  I would love to hear about what you are dreaming of, hoping to achieve, or anything from your life time bucket list!

Vipassana Meditation

My Second Vipassana