The Bucket List

I think it’s important to have a list of things that we’d like to do or accomplish as we each journey through our individual lives. It helps keep us on track with some of the bigger, or even smaller things that we’d like to try at least once as we go through. Remember, we only go through life once, better to do it now rather than leave it till later.

It can also be a useful tool to show those people around you just what sort of a person you are, and what types of things you have an interest in. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone who see’s your list goes one step further and offers to help you with one of your goals.

(I was out driving with a friend one day, and as we drove by the Airport, I commented on a nice looking helicopter out front, I commented that I’d always wanted to fly in one, but never had as yet. Turns out his company needed him to rent one the following week to video an area they were going to be laying some pipe. He offered, I accepted, and the following week I spend two hours flying in the very helicopter I had commented on.

Scratched one more off my list!

I’ll share with you my own list in the hopes that it helps you to either create your own, or simply gives you a few things you’d like to add to your own.

My Bucket List

And I am continually on the lookout for new and exciting things to add to my list, so if you the reader would like to share your own “Bucket List” with us, I look forward to reading them!

Once again thank you all for reading TheHappySelf.com

Warren

A change in the world starts with you.

Will this New Year’s Day ring in the end of the worst decade ever?

That’s the claim made by Time Magazine, which recently featured an eye-catching cover of a crying baby in a party hat with the headline “Decade from Hell.”

According to Time, some of the worst events of the “worst decade ever” began with the disputed election of George W. Bush as President, which was followed by the 9/11 Terrorist attacks.  There were continuing military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and a series of major natural disasters, including a tsunami in the South Pacific, Hurricane Katrina in the U.S. South, and major earthquakes in India and China.  As the decade ends, we have double digit unemployment and a global economic crisis.

Granted it was a tough decade, but hardly the worst ever.

Those who are familiar with history can think of rougher decades, such as the 1930s, which saw the Great Depression, or the 1940s, when World War II brought worldwide chaos.  The 1860s were another rough decade in the U.S. due to the Civil War.  And then there were the 1340s, when the Black Plague led to the deaths of almost half the population of Europe.  Viewing this past decade with respect to history puts things in perspective.  We’ve had a tough decade, but probably not the worst ever.

By focusing solely on the problems of the past decade, Time Magazine is engaging in the type of thinking that leads many people to anxiety and depression.

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Give and Watch Your Soul Ignite

When asked to describe their ideal holiday season, most people don’t put shopping for gifts at the top of the list.

Instead, they list spending time with loved ones, having fun with friends, enjoying holiday food and taking some time away from work to relax.

Unfortunately, the reality is often something quite different.  The pressure to shop, spend money and entertain leaves many of us feeling both exhausted and tapped out.

According to a poll taken by the Center for the New American Dream, 75% of Americans would like to have a less materialistic Christmas or Hanukkah holiday.  More than 85% feel that the holiday season should focus on family and taking care of people in need rather than on shopping and giving gifts.  The survey also found that 4 out of 5 people wish for a simplified holiday season.

If the majority of Americans say they would like a simpler and less materialistic holiday season, why don’t they just make the change?

Unfortunately, many of us feel pressured to spend more than we can afford on gifts and entertaining.  It seems too hard to tell family and friends that we would like to cut back.  This doesn’t have to be as hard as it may seem.  In advance of the holidays, let everyone know that you’d like to start some new traditions, including spending less time shopping and more time enjoying the company of family and friends in the month of December.

By ramping down your holiday shopping and spending, you can create new, simpler holiday traditions that center around family celebrations and the rituals of the season.

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