Going out in style
Have you ever thought about your last will and testament? Are you sure you are prepared for the unmentionable? Have you maybe even written letters for your loved ones in case of an accident?
Nowadays, dangers seem to be lurking behind every corner. Although work places are getting safer and safer, and there are medical advances nearly daily, we still can’t escape the fate that awaits us all at the end of the road. It can be an accident on the streat: being run over by a car or unluckily being in a train crash. It can happen at home: slipping in the shower and hitting your head, or suffocating in a freak fire accident. It can happen at work: being shot by a robber or crushed by a heavy load. Or you could be fighting with an illness and sadly lose the battle at the end.
Whichever way it happens, it is always a terrible time of suffering for the friends and family you have left behind and nothing you can do will ease the pain they will have to go through. You can leave a letter saying your true feelings, but that won’t bring you back. And wouldn’t it have been better to say it when you were still alive?
This is why every man, woman and child should create a bucket list for their life. A bucket list is a list of things and places you would like to do and visit before you bite the dust. It can be anything you can think of. Tell your loved ones you love them. Experience zero gravity. Go skydiving. Possible, impossible or just improbable, it doesn’t matter, because today it may be unlikely, but who knows how things will be in five years? Or ten years? Maybe it will even be possible to visit the moon or mars in twenty years. Who can say?
It can also be small things, like eating a batch of raw cookie dough, or seeing the sun set over the sea. But always remember that it should be things you can scratch of the list. Don’t put long term, continuing things on the list, because a bucket list doesn’t work like that. For example, putting down “sleeping in” doesn’t work, because how often do you want to do it? for the rest of your life? Once? You can put down: “sleep in for a whole week”. This has a beginning and an end, making it a viable item on a bucket list.
And try not to make it too specific either. Instead of putting down “see Ed Sheeran perform in concert in the Hï Ibiza”, try putting down “ reserve at Ibiza Tables” and adapt it to what you can really achieve. Because something too specific is very hard to complete. Maybe the artist will never perform there. Maybe the artist will retire before you have the chance to see him. Or it is even possible that the club closes on its own without you having the time to visit it.
Although I said before that it’s OK to put impossible things on the list, try to keep the simple and adaptable. Ideas like “break lap record on Nürburgring in a Ferrari F150” are a bit hard to complete. Are you a professional race driver? Do you happen to have a Ferrari F150 you can dare push to the limits to try and come close to the lap record? Keep it simple. “Drive a supercar” is a good start. You can even specify a car if you have a special one in mind. And once your in the driver seat you can decide where to go and what to get up to.
Lastly, a bucket list is personal, but it doesn’t have to be private. Remember you have friends a family who love you and wish the best for you. There are always birthdays and holidays to give gifts and presents, since nowadays there are many companies that offer special trips and rentals and people often have heavy doubts on what to gift a relative and friend. What easier to have a look at your bucket list and pitch in for a trip to Japan or some tickets to Disneyland. Maybe they will even see something from their own bucket list and decide to take you along for the trip or organize it for a special occasion. Everybody has dreams they wish they could fulfill, and what better way to fulfill your dreams than with your friends.
Just remember that the last item on every bucket list should be: create a new bucket list. Because we should never stop dreaming and if you one day should be able to complete your whole bucket list, it isn’t a reason to stop living or looking for new adventures and challenges.