Summer Bucket List: Cast a Net on Those Dreams
“Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.” ~ John Lennon
Have you ever had a summer end where you’ve said, “Hey, I didn’t get time to clean out that closet, or go to the beach as much as I would have liked!” Whatever is on your summer list, it may not get accomplished if you don’t plan for it. A “Bucket List” refers to things you’d like to do before you “kick the bucket” (die). Why not accomplish that list now?
If you don’t have a “Summer Bucket List,” here are 5 tips and suggestions to get you started.
- WHY Create a Summer Bucket List? To focus on things you want to do, work on a key goal or two within a set time frame, make the most of your summer, or just have fun!
- For WHOM Should the List Be? Create the list as an individual, couple, or family.
- HOW Do You Create a List? It can be a list on a sheet of paper, bulletin board, chalk board, or poster. Use check boxes to see your progress. You can also place the items on small sheets of paper or popsicle sticks and place them in a bucket, can, or jar then draw an item out randomly for fun.
- WHAT Type of Items Should Be on the List? Identify things in which you are interested. Here are some topics and examples:
- Arts & Science: Create new things. Example: Make a lava lamp. Make crayon art.
- Boredom Cures: List simple, low budget things you can do around the house. Examples: Camp outside. Make S’mores over the stove.
- Community Service: Help the community. Example: Bake cookies and take them to a fire station.
- Develop Skills: Learn something new. Examples: Learn French.
- Entertainment & Adventure: Do something fun you haven’t done in a while, or what to try. Examples: See a drive-in movie. Go skydiving.
- Exercise: Do an activity that requires some physical activity. Examples: Go on a family bike ride. Go for a hike or nature walk.
- Food: Explore new foods. Examples: Try Thai food. Bake a cake in an egg shell.
- Friends & Family: Spend time with special people or those you haven’t seen in a while. Example: Visit Yumiko in Japan. Make cookies with Grandma.
- Goals: Review your goals. Identify goals you want to accomplish this summer. Examples: Visit colleges to which I want to apply in the Fall.
- Projects: Identify projects you’ve been avoiding. Examples: Clean the pantry. Plant trees in the backyard.
- Local Exploration: Be a visitor in your own town. Examples: Visit a museum. Go to a Farmers’ Market.
- Relax: Take time for yourself. Examples: Have a spa day. Lay in a hammock.
- Travel: Near or far, where do you want to go? Examples: Stay in an over-water bungalow in Tahiti. Drive up the coast.
5. REMEMBER: Brainstorm on ideas, and refrain from telling yourself you don’t have time, money, skill, etc. to do it. Just because you create a list doesn’t mean you have to do everything on your list … unless you want to.
Whatever your dreams, hopes, goals, and “bucket lists,” don’t let the summer fly by without making the most of the time you have. Be creative, think big, and have fun!
