The 2011 Bucket List

I sincerely hope I don't kick the bucket in 2011! This is my list of dreams, desires, hopes and goals that I hope to see in 2011 before 2011 kicks the bucket a year from now! I intend for this to be a constantly evolving list... some things may get crossed off as unimportant two months from now, and I may see something two weeks from now that is Essential that I had completely overlooked today. Having given that disclaimer, here's my 2011 Bucket List:

1) First on the list, maybe not the most important, but the one that bubbles up above everything else: I want to be kissed by a terrific man in 2011. Not any ol' ordinary kiss... I want a make your knees weak, worthy of the silver screen, romantic, take me to another realm kiss. The kind of kiss that inspires new vistas and possibilities. The kind of kiss that you read about in fairy tales.

2) I want adventure. I'm kinda scared to proclaim that... adventure can be rugged, difficult, painful and dangerous... the growth producing kind. Not sure THAT is what I'm asking of 2011! I want the growth and excitement and challenge of adventure without the pain. Is that possible? Seriously, I ask that question. And if adventure cannot be divorced from struggle, do I still desire it? (And whether, I desire it or not, is probably immaterial... I don't really get to control what comes my way. God has God's own 2011 bucket list in mind for my life!)

BUT, if I COULD write a script for adventure in 2011, the fun and challenging kind, that is, it would possibly look like this:

Travel! I yearn to experience other cultures. I yearn for immersion in other ways of life. I don't desire sterile, comfortable hotel rooms, safe travel, and normal Americanized food. I crave rides on camels or donkeys, sleeping on the floor of a hut in some unknown village in central Asia, smiling and "conversing" over tea with people whose spoken language I do not know, hugging and being hugged by bright-eyed children, trying new food that makes my eyes water, and that I even approach with a little daring trepidation.

A pretty daunting desire for a woman in a wheelchair. All of this would require a CONSIDERABLE amount of vulnerability, creativity, and community effort. (For example, outside of the realm of the Americans with Disability Act accommodations in the US, and Americanized hotel standards, any travel would require overcoming obstacles... help standing up from a toilet (or hole in the ground) that doesn't have grab bars, help to be carried over craggy ground, etc.)

In the meantime, as I patiently await the confluence of circumstances and people to allow that kind of travel adventure to emerge, I will pay attention to the daily adventures that await just outside my front door. Every time I go to Walmart or Food City, there are always opportunities to encounter adventure. It doesn't have to be half-way around the world. I will remain open to that with my hands and eyes wide open.

3) I want to do some good in the world, and I hope to do that AND earn some income at the same time. I long to be used to touch peoples' lives and to hear their stories. I long to help them connect their stories to the bigger story of the gospel, even as they help me connect myt own life to that narrative.

At this point in my life, I don't have a clue about the specifics of that dream... is it in a church environment? Does it involve going back to school for more education? Does it involve disability ministry? Does it involve the secular counseling field? Or none of the above. Help God!!! I need you to guide this. I need to know Your plans for my future so that I don't go off in counter-productive directions. I am trying to wait patiently for guidance before making choices. But, on the other hand, I don't know if I need to take a leap and do something and trust that you will steer the ship in the right direction. Like I said, "Help, God!"

4) I want to lose another 50 pounds. AND I want to continue building muscles and enjoy the possibilities that await for using my body. I've said before that I don't expect to ever be a marathon runner, and probably not even an "around the block walker", but I KNOW that every time I exercise, I FEEL like a world-class athlete. What I am doing with my body is every bit as marvelous and exciting and challenging as, say, an athlete training for the Olympics. While the RESULTS might not be the same, there is a similar spirit of challenge, hope, persistence, discipline.

I just look forward to 2011 to seeing what happens, without any defined expectations. I am excited about continually trying new things as regards moving my body... that might mean trying out a 3-wheeled cycle down at the river walking track, or finding a gym and seeing what possibilities exist for strength-building, or going swimming in the lake this summer, or...

Along these lines of losing weight and growing more physically fit, I'm excited to see where I will be on July 24 when I turn 50. (I can see an EXTREMELY fit, sexy and healthy woman in a wheelchair 7 months down the road. Takes my breath away!)

I'm also excited to go to Kelly's graduation from High School at the end of May in a beautiful sundress and her being proud of her mom. I'm excited to take her to college in the fall looking classy and healthy and her being proud of her mom. Good stuff.

5) I want to continue the grand adventure of learning. Does that involve formal education? Does it involve weekly trips to the library? What topics? Bible, Spanish, counseling, psychology. I need your help here, too, God... there are just SO many possibilities...

6) I want to do some intentional writing in 2011. I need to devote an hour a day to writing the "Great American Autobiography about the Woman who Became Able After she became Disabled".

Let's see where I am here: I want a world-class romance, adventure in the Himalayas, to impact peoples' lives, to lose 50 pounds, to explore the marvelous physical limits of my body, to stuff my head full of wonderful knowledge, and to write a blockbuster book. Seems like enough, for now. smile. Although, as I said, this list is a living thing, and an hour from now, even, it could be different!

2011: I'm excited to know you and hope I will avail myself of all that you offer!! Excited to see what plans God has in store for my future. 2010, I have a love/hate thing going on with you. But, I thank you for all you've brought into my life this year... the good, the bad, and the ugly. It hasn't been boring!