My List

I know this is morbid but...people die. I'm gonna die. Like there is a 100% chance that I will die. It could be in 5 minutes. It could be in 50 years. My point being that:

1. You MUST know where you're going. I hate the whole Hollywood/TV thing where the loved one asks the dying person if they believe in God and they say respond, "I think so." Then they go into this long speech about going to church as a kid and you're supposed to think they're a good person, yada yada yada. Y'all I just I wanna hand them a Bible and say, "Honey, that's not good enough!" Because it's not. You have to know that you know that you know that Jesus Christ is the way. The only way.

2. You MUST always tell your loved ones that you love them. Even if you don't like them. Take this morning for example. I got mad at my mother, and she said I love you anyway. I'm sure she didn't want to because I made her mad. But she did. And I said I love you, too. I don't always do this. Shoot, sometimes...No, often, my pride gets in the way and I leave in a huff. Well shame on me. Another case in point: When Andrew falls asleep on my couch, and I'm mad at him when I leave for work. I should still say I love you. I know this. (Sorry babe. You know I do. But stop sleeping on my couch!) My point being that we should ALWAYS tell our loved ones that we love them. We should always treat our conversations as if they are our last. Even if we're mad.

3. You MUST live life to the fullest. I'm sorry. I can't stand people who say, "I just wanna go home to Jesus. Anytime. That's all I want. He can take me now." Don't get me wrong. I want that too. Of course I want that, but why not have both? Life a full life. Then die. Then go home to Jesus. Why not have your cake and eat it too! God created me to have human desires so forgive me for wanting to graduate. Go to Prom. Get married. Have sex. Have babies. You catch my drift?

All this being said, I encourage you to have a list. It doesn't have to be a physical, methodological list where you are all anal about checking stuff off. Just a loose list of things you MUST do before you die. Here are a few of mine....I may have left some stuff off. I may add a few, but here they are (in no particular order):

1. Write another book
2. Tour Jane Austen country
3. Have a child
4. Get married
5. Have sex
6. Go on a cruise
7. Go to Greece and Italy.
8. Run a half marathon (Jury's still out on if I'd even wanna run a full marathon. I'm thinkin' no right now.)
9. Surf (or attempt to)
10. Go to Africa (on missions and on a safari)
11. Rescue a dog (I actually just did this, but I had written my list prior to Belle)
12. Hang out with a celebrity
13. Have no debt (Don't panic Andrew. I only owe my Dad a few G's)
14. Swim with dolphins
15. Learn another language
16. Kiss Andrew on top of the Eiffel Tower...then sit with him at an outdoor cafe clad in a beret, while drinking espresso (Shut up y'all!)
17. Spend the night at The Plaza in NYC
18. Stay at a Haunted Hotel for a Murder Mystery weekend
19. Visit all 50 states (Maybe not all 50 states. Can't say I care about places like South Dakota. But Hawaii, Alaska, Washington, and places like that. Yeah buddy.)
20. Ride a Hot Air Balloon
21. Change someone's life for the better

Of course there are other things like milk a cow, ride a mechanical bull. And the obvious: watch my children get married. But seriously, I could go all day with this.)

Now I'm sure I have more but these are the ones that come to mind. Now go home or if you're already home, get up and get a piece of paper and start pondering these things.