Lists...And my "Bucket List"

I keep myself motivated and organized with lists! Some are simply my daily To-Do lists, I also have a list of restaurants that I want to try, various shopping lists, etc. I work off my lists and add to them daily. If I think of something that I need to add to my list, I will add it just so that I can take it off minutes later as COMPLETED! I am weird that way but I love how accomplished I feel when I can say I did it and I don't like forgetting things. I used to have written lists but since the iPhone, that transitioned to multiple "Notes" on my phone. I also have a "Bucket List" and this is where the dreamer in me comes into play...

Sure, I saw the movie "The Bucket List" with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman and yes, I cried. OK, no shocker there. My favorite item on Carter Chamber's list (played by Freeman) was of course his desire to "kiss the most beautiful girl in the world" which Edward Cole (Nichlson) took care of when he kissed the grand-daughter he never knew he had after Carter's death. So tender and so real and ultimately a surprise to everyone including Carter when he realized that the beautiful girl was far  better than he had ever imagined.

Like Edward (Nicholson) learned, I have also learned that I can have a Bucket List of dreams and I can imagine some pretty incredible things but nothing compares to what God has in store for me if I simply wait and appreciate the experience as it unfolds. If I am too wrapped up in myself or into making it happen, I can very easily miss the simplicity and the beauty that is waiting.

This past weekend, I actually checked 2 things off my Bucket List at the same time...Seeing the Grand Canyon and Riding in a Helicopter. And all I can say is WOW! There I was flying over things that were both created by man and things created by the ultimate Creator. The skies seemed endless, the details all around me were vast and then landing in the Canyon and having breakfast with friends while we tried to soak it all in...so simple and so unexpectedly amazing.

So there you have it...2 things checked off my Bucket List and I am grateful, still in awe and feel beyond fortunate to have done it how I did. Oh and this Sunday...Hike to the Hollywood Sign! One question...Do you have a Bucket List?

An "Emotional Volcano" I Am

I was the Photo Editor for my high school's yearbook my Senior year and the 2 Editors described me perfectly in the "thanks" portion of the book itself. They said that I was an "emotional volcano." And you know what? I agree...I feel emotions deeply...HUGE in fact. Not only emotions for myself but for my family and friends as well as perfect strangers. It is just how I am made.

I am also a person that needs to process my thoughts and those emotions tied to them. I was given my first diary when I was only 5 years old and could not write so I would dictate to my secretary...otherwise known as my Mom. She would write it exactly as I shared my thoughts on the day. Today, I have a drawer full of diaries and later journals where I have "processed" my days.

I am also a dreamer and love to have others see that dreaming is good. Some find it scary...some even see it as almost a sin but not me...dream and dream BIG. Share those dreams with God and ask Him for guidance as you go after them. I am certain that He will direct you. Sometimes it takes longer to see the dream come to fruition and honestly some may not ever come to reality but that doesn't make them or the process wrong. It is life.

Last year, I said I wanted to journal again. I will be honest...the desire never went away but I kept putting it aside and letting the business of life steal that away from me. Because well...I am a busy person. And I can get too busy in a heartbeat. But the thing about a dream, the thing about a desire...they don't typically go away. Sometimes they are squashed but they remain. 

Today, I moved the clutter around in my life and guess what....there it was! That dream and desire to share my heart and process. So for some, this daily, weekly or monthly journal now in the form of a blog may be boring but for me it makes me happy. I will smile and I will cry while I process. I will struggle through tough lessons and failures but I will learn from them.

I see myself sharing about all the different areas of my life. The various things that I enjoy and what makes me who I am-my faith in Christ, my family & friends, cooking, commercial real estate, learning, working out, decorating, soooooo many things. Can you tell I am smiling from ear to ear as I write this? I am...it has been a long time coming and although this isn't at all eloquent, it is 100% me! Thanks for reading...feels good to be sharing with you.