Bucket List

One of my friends recently turned 39 and last week she posted on her Facebook asking people for suggestions for a "Before 40 Bucket List."

Surprisingly, I do not have a bucket list. I say surprisingly because if you know me you know I love lists and I make New Year's Resolutions every year. I think I don't have a bucket list because I aim to do everything I want to do when I realize I want to do it. So a lot of the things on people's bucket lists (international travel, sky diving, camping, swimming with sharks, learning another language, ballroom dancing, staying in an ice hotel) are things I've already done. So now I'm thinking about what else I would put on my bucket list. Here it is:

Become a Parent

I'm actively working towards this goal. Right now that involves getting my finances in order, starting a better career trajectory, and researching to figure out what I need to do and where I need to go to adopt.

Man and his child making superman poses in bathing suits, swim goggles, and towels draped like capes.

Publish My Kids' Book

I wrote a queer, trans, adoption, and disability inclusive kids' book about where babies come from that I want to self-publish in English and French. My cousin said she'll illustrate it and we're hoping to get it out within the next year. 

Black and white wood cutting-esque drawing of a woman writing with a quill pen.

Volunteer as an Educational Advocate

I did a training a few years ago but haven't had the time to commit to it yet because my schedule has been too busy. By the time I have more time I'll probably have to re-do the training. I'm still interested in this though.

Picture of a child with school papers on one side and the definition of the word advocate on the other.

Help Youth Aging Out of Foster Care

I want to get involved politically with this issue and I also want to foster parent youth aging out of the system. But for right now I'm interested in becoming a mentor since the time commitment is somewhere closer to 2-4 hours a week and that is something I can commit to indefinitely, which I feel is important since the last thing a kid in that situation needs is another adult who comes and goes. To this aim, I called the Young Adult Resource Network to inquire about volunteering. They are a wraparound support program for youth ages 17-22 who are aging out of the foster care system, complete with mentors, skills trainings for the youth, and a Community Advocacy Center that is a place where they can do laundry, eat, shower, use the internet, and hang out. It even has music and yoga studios.

Cartoon that depicts aging out of the foster care system as a cliff that a teenager is sliding off towards adulthood.

Travel

Some of the specific trips I want to plan are: a camping road trip across the USA, scuba diving in the great barrier reef, watching the northern lights in Iceland, and celebrating Beltane in Edinburgh. I'm sure I'll come up with many more. I love traveling and would happily visit every state in the USA and every country in the world if I had the chance. 

Image of a woman with a suitcase skipping down a rural road with images of foreign landmarks in the sky.

I'm sure I'll think of more things to add to this list eventually.

What about you? Do you have a bucket list? And if so, what's on it?