My Next 31 Years

I officially survived my first year as a 30-something-year-old. Today I turn 31. Sometimes I find myself wondering, “where did the past 31 years go?” It seems like just yesterday I was living the idyllic life of a carefree farm kid. But those days are long gone. 31 years later I find myself living and working in the big city.

Last year when I hit the big 30 I shared a blog post titled Enjoying the Ride where I reflected on some of the exciting adventures I’ve had the privilege of experiencing along my journey of life. Check out that blog post.

Last year, I looked back. This year, I’ve decided to look ahead. What would I like to accomplish in the next 31 years of my life?

Here are several things on my Bucket List (in no particular order):

• Visit Africa and go on a safari.
• Get married and have children.
• Live on an acreage outside the city.
• Take an Alaskan cruise.
• Tour around the Hawaiian islands.
• Grow my own food – have a small garden.
• Travel to Newfoundland – the only Canadian province I haven’t been.
• Become an Adobe InDesign and Adobe Illustrator whiz.
• Go skiing at every resort in the Canadian Rockies.
• Go skiing in Colorado.
• Participate in a half marathon.
• Go whitewater rafting – class 4 or 5 rapids.
• Take a helicopter tour over the Canadian Rockies.
• Drive Route 66 through the U.S. and stop at random small towns.
• Have one of my blog posts featured on Freshly Pressed – the WordPress homepage.

Country artist Tim McGraw has a song titled, My Next 30 Years. He sings, “I’m gonna cry a little less and laugh a little more, find a world of happiness without the hate and fear – figure out just what I’m doing here, in my next 30 years.”

Good words to remember as I embark on my next 31 years.