What Do You Want To Do Before You Die?

What do you want to do before you die? How many times in your life have you been asked this or asked what’s on your bucket list. It’s a question we often think about, but sadly don’t always act on. Often in this day and age people are too busy with work to even remember what they truly want to do before they die. We live in a fast paced age where we have to fight, and work hard to succeed. Often those dreams and things we want to do get put on hold. Life is precious, and we are given one shot at it. So why not do what you want, live how you want and be who you want to be. Easier said than done right? 

Some time ago I was asked by members of the Buried Life to make a list of the top 100 things I’d want to do before I died. It was a weird question and something I never really thought about. I'll be the first to admit that it felt silly at first, but as I started to write it, it became therapeutic in nature. Old dreams and desires long forgotten come back to memory, while new ideas and goals manifest. The list became personal, I put thought to paper, and laid the foundation to strive to reach those 100 things. 

To give you all an example I've posted 10 from my own personal list below. Some have been accomplished and are in bold text, while others have not yet been reached. Some are small in nature and some are large. Some can happen tomorrow while others can only happen in the far off future. 

5. Go skydiving (Got cancelled twice, third time’s a charm)
7. Swim in the Pacific Ocean (Like the Atlantic, but much bigger)
18. Learn how to ride a motorcycle (Requirement to be the cool grandfather)
28. Hit a home run (I hear the Jays are hiring) 
30. Open my own business (You're never too young) 
55. Own a tractor (This might be a country thing)
68. Travel to New Zealand (Almost stayed permanently)
78. Become a grandfather (I want to be the cool grandfather)
82. Overcome my fear of flying (Flew for 22+ hours) 
90. Learn to fly (Overcoming fear of flying, check) 

The great thing about attempting to make this list is that it forces you to ask yourself what you really want to do. Some may find it difficult to complete the list, some may find it easy. The thing to remember is that we are all individuals and all have different dreams and desires. What may be an item on your list may not be one for someone else, but it doesn’t make it any less important. If you are having trouble writing your list, remember nothing you want to do is too small, large, silly or out there. In fact I bet when making your list you will find others who share similar things you want to do!

So what I want you to do now is take some time, and start your own list. You don’t need to get to 100 right away, just continue to add to it at your own pace. In fact your list can grow beyond 100! The point is to start the list now, put it on the wall and start doing. Remember life is an adventure not to be wasted on a couch or behind a desk, so get out there, stop dreaming and start doing.

Cheers!

Dr. Nicholas Fedele, ND