The Bucket List has entered the English language. The term comes from a 2007 American movie, starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman as two terminally ill men who attempt to do a 'wish list' of things that they always postponed and thought they might someday do. They decide with time 'running out' that they are going to try and do them now before they 'kick the bucket' and are dead.
Many of us now have Bucket Lists. These are the many things we hope someday to be able to do. From the simplest, to the very biggest wishes, most of us have something we say we would do if we won 'the lottery' or if we were sure the world was ending or if we were given a limited time to live due to some terminal illness etc.
Basically, it is the Dream List, the list of our hopes and dreams. It is also the list that we postpone, maybe throughout all of our lives because it doesn't seem as if we will ever be able to afford it; the time, the price, the freedom to fulfil it.
However, 2006 kick started My Bucket List, pushed me hard and left me, a few months later, working on my second bucket list. Whoever, especially me, could have imagined that...ever.
I was motivated by mourning to risk flying again for the first time in 20+ years to go and see what I had only dreamed about. As I tried to organize a schedule for my first trip to Europe, a gap of a week appeared. Trying to find somewhere to go, excluded Italy because of airfare, so France filled the gap with a $99 fare from Birmingham, England to Paris. A hotel chain familiar from North America gave me reasonably priced, central Paris accommodation. An expensive cancellation fee, kept me from changing my mind.
Before I knew it, I was not only booked to fly across the Atlantic, but a few days later to fly again and a week after that yet again. It looked like I was making up for lost time and literally, 'Do and Die' if I let my fear of flying prevail or 'Do and Live', if my flights were the same as millions of planes a year, taking me to what for me was Terra Incognita.
I began in western England, near the border of Wales where I was fortunate to stay with some acquaintances and visit the school I had only heard about for over 20 years. After this, the flight to Paris was both a revelation and a true test since this second flight in a week was in a very small plane. To my surprise and delight, I could really enjoy leaving land and seeing land again across the English Channel. Magically all around me, sparkling silver planes resembled shining stars.
A bit of help from a passerby got me into central Paris. Two Metro stations within a block of my hotel meant easy travel around the city and the usual footsore satisfaction of tourism. A Haute Couture retrospective of one of the masters of Couture, Balenciaga, for a small 10 Euro cost, added fashion heaven to the list. Parisian summer weather at a hellish 40+ Celsius, added Reims and Champagne to my itinerary for relief. Early in my trip, I started permanently smiling and Paris smiled back at me with gifts of sorbet and foie gras and so much more for the duration of my visit. Paris became for me, like so many others, Mecca.
London however, was tough on me. First my luggage was lost for almost an entire day. Clothes wise this was not very important, losing family 'treasures' of memorabilia was. The first night found me bewildered, with only a photocopied page of directions to my hotel, 6 bottles of champagne (for my hosts later in the trip) and cancelled plans for help navigating the city greeting me at the hotel.
When in doubt, do something: Time to book an excursion for the next day to Windsor, Stonehenge and Oxford. It sounded like a plan. Too bad my tour guide left me behind in Windsor. Luckily another good guy, gave me a free trip to Oxford with his tour. He had as a reward a jar of the Windsor castle jam and a gift of Beer money. I toured Oxford with the group and with his help and several phone calls he made, met my own tour to return to London.
After more help, I saw Kew Gardens with a friend, toured around London extensively including a compensation trip from the tour company to see the Crown Jewels and the rest of The Tower, a trip on the Thames and Champagne Tea at Kensington Palace.
On top of this, Buckingham Palace and 80 of the Queen's Dresses and all of her regalia for the Order of the Garter and Thistle etc. were on show for me in an unbelievably magical extra excursion, concluded by a walk through the sublime gardens.
Real life intruded again with, a 300 pound phone bill from my room which taught me forever about hotel phone charges; a black van ordered by the hotel cost me 26 pounds to go to St. Paul's Cathedral. In short, reminders that I wasn't at home any longer intruded a bit. Otherwise, I saw a lot of London despite a disappointing start.
In the north, I had help from a Historian. It cost me a bit of gas for the vehicle and a few treats. In return Edinburgh and the Yacht Britannia and Cambridge and a Gala Dinner were arranged for me as if by magic.
It was in York that I saw the VE Day express train which took folks, such as my late husband and his brother, south to celebrate the end of World War II. There was also a statue of the Emperor Constantine, who became Emperor of Rome while stationed in York.
Why wouldn't I believe in magic. It happened to me. It could happen to you if you take a chance. Take a small step to what you know you can accomplish of your personal Bucket List, then take a second small step and another perhaps.
You'll be surprised at yourself, but also at what you can accomplish that you only dreamed about...If only, you took a chance, found the time, saved the money, overcame your fear of (flying etc.)...and generally decided Tempus Fugit - Time Flies.
There is now, there is possibly tomorrow and there is the journey of a thousand miles. It all starts with a single step. I speak from experience, Mine did.
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