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Prose from the Bucket List – Go At It

I saw someone use a quote on their social media page this morning.
The quote is from Confucius which says, “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.”

I think about this with regards to my life. I think about this with regards to my happiness or to the levels of which I have worked to either gain momentum or look to find a better ground. How often have I gone at it with all I have or all of my heart?
On the other side, how often have I gone cheap or weak and hoped for the best?
How many times have I quit or given up?
How many times did I do an injustice to myself by forgiving my personal laziness with excuses that rationalize my reasons why I failed myself?
These are good ideas to consider because . . .

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Prose from the Bucket List – Without Changing a Thing

I remember the time I read about a day lived by Robert Fulghum. He said there was one day in his life that he wished he could relive, exactly as it was without any changes.
I read Fulghum’s words in his book, “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” because the book was at The Old Man’s bedside when he was in the hospital way back in December of 1989.
The Old Man was at the end of his life and I was at the beginning of mine. However, I am at a turning point in my life now and looking back, I have discovered some incredible oversights and missed opportunities which I see glaring at me as if to have missed the obvious because I have hindsight. And hindsight is perfect.

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Prose from the Bucket List – Day One

Everyone has a list or two. And the list can be simple or some can be more complicated.
Some can be like this list I have which I plan to attack throughout the length of this journal. Or, even beyond this, I have goals I want to achieve and places I want to see.
I have a bucket list, which is important to me.
I have a list of regrets too and to be clear, it is my intention to shorten this list and lengthen my list of accomplishments, one item at a time.

I tell you
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Prose from the Bucket List – Preface

It would only seem fair that since this is the start of a new journey for me, then it would only make sense to start this with a new journal as well.
The journal before this was personal. I admit this is true.
Then again, anything written from the heart or anything which is true to the soul is personal.
So, to be true to myself and true to my mission, I have to be true to my word as well.

As always, my aim is to speak to you.
This is why I write the way I do.
I want you to think and feel and see what I’m seeing.

I want to write as if I am talking to you, like two people would speak when no one else is around.
I write to you in the voice of a real person. I have not come here to satisfy the literary snobs or to please the grammar police nor am I here to compete with other writers or to act as some kind of flowery writer with all the cool pronouns.

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Notes from the Neighborhood – The Last One

I’m calling this last entry “Hope.”
I say this is the perfect way to end this journal because although life does not come with any guarantees and in spite of the twists and turns, above all else, I still have hope.
It is morning now and soon I am going to embark on an official journey. This is no simple task. Not by any means, because as simple as this is, there’s more to this trip than meets the eye.

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Notes from the Neighborhood – Hardwired

I am thinking about the old telephone operators that used to manually connect telephone lines so that people could talk to each other.
I’m thinking about the wires that made the connection, which obviously needed to happen. Otherwise, there’s be no communication.
I think about what took place when the connection was lost or the cord was pulled and removed from the port.

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Notes From the Neighborhood – The Light of Two Candles

Sit with me. Just for a second.
The sun will be up soon and I don’t want to miss this. I don’t want to miss the first light.
I don’t want to miss another morning, at least not right now.

It’s beautiful out. The wind is cool but nice on the skin. It’s not cold by any means but the wild nature of the summer heat has vanished from the air.
And there’s things to miss about this. And there are things to look forward to.
Always.

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Notes from the Neighborhood – New Life

It is amazing to me that I am here now. Then again, where else would I be?
Where else could I be?
I am a firm believer that whatever could have happened, did happen. I believe that we look around and hem and haw or waste time thinking about the ideas of what could have been.
At the same time, all this does is awaken us to an idea that what happened is not what we asked for.
All this does is open our eyes and creates an awareness that we need to make a change. Yes, this is true.
That’s right.
I need to make a change as well.

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Notes from the Neighborhood – Redefining Self-Worth

Its time to understand and redefine this. But more, it’s time to come to an understanding that as I evolve, I have to allow myself the permission to evolve as well.
But first, I have to allow myself the honest realization that yes . . .
Life is crazy.

It is crazy though. Isn’t it?
Life.

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Notes from the Neighborhood – I Believe It’s in the Stars

There has to be something, a light maybe. There has to be something to cling to or at least some kind of fabric to our lives that holds us together.
You hear people say things all the time. They say things like, “You have to let go,” or they’ll tell you that “God doesn’t put anything in our lives that we can’t handle.”
Then I’ve heard people say, “You never know how strong you are until strong is the only choice you have.”

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