I'm a big fan of the Mighty Life List. Here's mine:
1. Identify every country and its capital on a blank world map
2. Introduce two people who fall in love
3. Recite a poem (no 3 liners!)
4. Read all of the background literature to understand a Cynthia Ozick Lit Crit essay
5. Tour Scandinavia on a cruise
6. Spend a month out of the US
7. Own a pair of shoes that cost more than $200
8. Bowl a 240 game
9. Visit every state in the US (Remaining: Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, )
10. Complete a 7 day silent retreat
11. Write a short story
12. Make 5 delicious mixed drinks (1. Bees knees)
13. Get a tattoo
14. Hold a basic conversation in another language
15. Run a half marathon
16. Buy a car outright
17. Own a home
18. Give $100 to a needy person
19. See the northern lights
20. Meet a president
21. Make home-made jam or jelly
22. Get a dog
23. Omit all fast food for 3 months
24. Find a religious community
25. Spend a month without spending money
26. Watch the Godfather series
27. Own a pair of red shoes
28. Send thank you cards to my favorite teachers
29. Publish a book
30. Write a grant for more than $100,000
31. Make an album with all of my students thank-you notes and cards
32. Send my mom a sweet letter every day for a week
33. Visit Stonehenge and Carhenge in the same year
34. Jump rope 300 times without stopping
35. Make yoga a daily habit for a year
36. Reduce my storage “stuff” to 3 boxes
37. Read a major work in all of the religious traditions
38. Understand tennis
39. Go on a week-long road trip without any plans
40. Make a piece of pottery
41. Sew a skirt
42. Compliment a stranger every day for a month
43. Learn basic chemistry
44. Keep a reading journal of 100 books
45. Become a tea drinker
46. Learn to knit
47. Visit an ashram
48. Write a historical essay
49. Hike in Colorado
50. Go sailing
51. Make snow angels as an adult
52. Make a picture show of the tree outside changing colors over the course of a year
53. Remodel a house
54. Plant and harvest a garden
55. Grow a herb garden
56. Finish a New York Times crossword puzzle
57. Ride a bike in Spain
58. Visit the Alhambra
59. Feed a goat
60. Take a day of rest every week for a year
61. Use all homemade cleaning products
62. Swim in the ocean
63. Knit a sweater
64. Start a book club
65. Learn to dance
66. Learn to make gluten-free bread
67. Learn to play a new instrument
68. Learn to say “no” kindly and effectively
69. Eat toasted marshmallows in the dead of winter
70. Make a major purchase for the women’s shelter
71. Spend a weekend watching foreign films
72. Keep a list of nice things that people say to me and dwell on it incessantly
73. Crochet a bedspread
74. Establish a regular meditation/prayer routine
75. Make a point of listening to a broader range of music
76. Paint my fingernails and toenails black
77. Visit Paris
78. Become a companion for an elderly person
79. Volunteer to read for the blind
80. Go to a book festival
81. Buy and master the hula hoop
82. Figure out where the Roman Empire went wrong
83. Fly a kite
84. Make a list of things that inspire me
85. Floss every day for a year
86. Buy something from ebay
87. Do something so kind for a friend that they cry
88. Host a Midsummer’s Day party
89. View the planets through a telescope
90. Create an annual “Me Day”
91. Become a full professor
92. Learn to sing the folk songs recorded by my great grandmother
93. Write my family genealogy
94. Learn calculus
95. Make a list of 5 people that anger me and forgive them for good
96. Make peace with my body
97. Learn to cook a turkey
98. Learn to juggle
99. Plant a tree
100. Eat seafood fresh from the ocean
1. Identify every country and its capital on a blank world map
2. Introduce two people who fall in love
3. Recite a poem (no 3 liners!)
4. Read all of the background literature to understand a Cynthia Ozick Lit Crit essay
5. Tour Scandinavia on a cruise
6. Spend a month out of the US
7. Own a pair of shoes that cost more than $200
8. Bowl a 240 game
9. Visit every state in the US (Remaining: Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, )
10. Complete a 7 day silent retreat
11. Write a short story
12. Make 5 delicious mixed drinks (1. Bees knees)
13. Get a tattoo
14. Hold a basic conversation in another language
15. Run a half marathon
16. Buy a car outright
17. Own a home
18. Give $100 to a needy person
19. See the northern lights
20. Meet a president
21. Make home-made jam or jelly
22. Get a dog
23. Omit all fast food for 3 months
24. Find a religious community
25. Spend a month without spending money
26. Watch the Godfather series
27. Own a pair of red shoes
28. Send thank you cards to my favorite teachers
29. Publish a book
30. Write a grant for more than $100,000
31. Make an album with all of my students thank-you notes and cards
32. Send my mom a sweet letter every day for a week
33. Visit Stonehenge and Carhenge in the same year
34. Jump rope 300 times without stopping
35. Make yoga a daily habit for a year
36. Reduce my storage “stuff” to 3 boxes
37. Read a major work in all of the religious traditions
38. Understand tennis
39. Go on a week-long road trip without any plans
40. Make a piece of pottery
41. Sew a skirt
42. Compliment a stranger every day for a month
43. Learn basic chemistry
44. Keep a reading journal of 100 books
45. Become a tea drinker
46. Learn to knit
47. Visit an ashram
48. Write a historical essay
49. Hike in Colorado
50. Go sailing
51. Make snow angels as an adult
52. Make a picture show of the tree outside changing colors over the course of a year
53. Remodel a house
54. Plant and harvest a garden
55. Grow a herb garden
56. Finish a New York Times crossword puzzle
57. Ride a bike in Spain
58. Visit the Alhambra
59. Feed a goat
60. Take a day of rest every week for a year
61. Use all homemade cleaning products
62. Swim in the ocean
63. Knit a sweater
64. Start a book club
65. Learn to dance
66. Learn to make gluten-free bread
67. Learn to play a new instrument
68. Learn to say “no” kindly and effectively
69. Eat toasted marshmallows in the dead of winter
70. Make a major purchase for the women’s shelter
71. Spend a weekend watching foreign films
72. Keep a list of nice things that people say to me and dwell on it incessantly
73. Crochet a bedspread
74. Establish a regular meditation/prayer routine
75. Make a point of listening to a broader range of music
76. Paint my fingernails and toenails black
77. Visit Paris
78. Become a companion for an elderly person
79. Volunteer to read for the blind
80. Go to a book festival
81. Buy and master the hula hoop
82. Figure out where the Roman Empire went wrong
83. Fly a kite
84. Make a list of things that inspire me
85. Floss every day for a year
86. Buy something from ebay
87. Do something so kind for a friend that they cry
88. Host a Midsummer’s Day party
89. View the planets through a telescope
90. Create an annual “Me Day”
91. Become a full professor
92. Learn to sing the folk songs recorded by my great grandmother
93. Write my family genealogy
94. Learn calculus
95. Make a list of 5 people that anger me and forgive them for good
96. Make peace with my body
97. Learn to cook a turkey
98. Learn to juggle
99. Plant a tree
100. Eat seafood fresh from the ocean