Back in high school, I set a goal: I wanted to run a marathon before I turned 30. However, as time passed, my passion for running faded. In 2005, the thought crossed my mind again—I told myself I would accomplish it before I turned 50. Unfortunately, running became challenging once more. But over the last two years, I’ve rekindled my relationship with running in a way that ensures I’ll keep at it for as long as I can. So, whether it happened 5 or 25 years late, I finally ran and completed a marathon.

Completing the marathon felt like checking off a lifelong bucket list item. Initially, I thought it might be a one-time achievement. Yet, now I realize that while it remains an important milestone, it’s not my last. I plan to run two marathons in 2025 and tackle a 50k Ultra as well.

As I reflect on this accomplishment and my upcoming 56th birthday in just two days, I’ve found myself pondering what I still want to achieve in life. This introspection led to the start of two projects. The first project is quite ambitious: I’m making a complex flow chart with a central goal at the top—”live the fullest life possible.” Below that, I’ll outline three to five main goals, covering aspects like body, mind, and spirit. Beneath those, there will be multiple tiers leading to goals such as maintaining good health, fostering strong relationships, and leaving a legacy.

However, the flow chart became overwhelming fairly quickly. This brought me back to the second project; bucket lists—what is a bucket list, anyway? I’ve always felt that completing a marathon was part of my own bucket list. Throughout my life, I’ve occasionally thought I had achieved other bucket list items, too. Some were goals, like achieving a certain level of security; others were experiences, like skydiving. At times, I wasn’t aware I even had a lifelong goal until I accomplished it, like swimming with sharks. At the same time, other dreams were transparent all along, such as running a marathon and living in Europe. Surprisingly, though, I’ve never actually crafted a bucket list.

Now, as I approach 56 years filled with experiences, I’ve been contemplating what I could include on a bucket list. I mean I have seen some shite. After some reflection, I’ve pieced together a list of things I want to accomplish before I reach the age of 110 and have my consciousness uploaded to the internet.

Bucket List

  • Complete a 100-mile ultra marathon (because apparently, regular marathons weren’t challenging enough)
  • Learn to dance well ( this will be challenging; I am very clumsy)
  • Master a musical instrument ( Still clumsy)
  • Achieve fluency in a second language ( I have studied Ukrainian, French, Arabic, German, and Spanish, and while I could order food in a restaurant or use the train in a couple I still can’t hold a conversation)
  • Write a book
  • Create something meaningful to pass on. (Maybe woodwork?)
  • Go on an African safari (photography not killing and not getting eaten by the wildlife)
  • Visit the pyramids ( All bucket lists require at least one of the world’s wonders, and I have already seen the coliseum)
  • Cruise the Amazon River (Again, don’t get eaten by the wildlife)
  • Scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef (Learn to scuba dive first)
  • Camp or glamp under the aurora borealis (preferably while sipping hot cocoa in a fancy igloo with a see-through roof)
  • Witness an active caldera
  • Travel to Antarctica
  • Go to space
  • Make a difference
  • Leave a legacy

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