How It Started

Recently, my hubby and I have gotten hooked on a series we found on Netflix called Heartland.  The series has really touched our hearts.  You should give it a try if you like horses and family stories.  This is the description from the website:
Set against the stunning vistas of the Alberta Rocky Mountains, Heartland is a sprawling family drama that follows sisters Amy and Lou Fleming and their grandfather, Jack, through the highs and lows of life on a horse ranch. http://www.cbc.ca/heartland/

On the last episode we watched, Val, a neighboring ranch owner, had been dealing with a serious illness.  At times, Val has difficulty getting along with her daughter and she is always tough in business.  After she receives an all clear on her health; she tries to change.  She makes a “Happy List” and starts working through the list.

Happy List or Bucket List

I like the idea of a “Happy List” compared to the often mentioned “Bucket List” because it just seems more positive.  In my mind, a “Bucket List” would consist of things you dream of; but that might not ever happen.  For example, going hot air ballooning or skydiving.  A “Bucket List” might be all the crazy things you want to do because your time on Earth is limited.

On the other hand, a “Happy List” might consist of little things like getting a hummingbird feeder so you can watch hummingbirds flying around or eating lunch at school with your grandson.  A “Happy List” should be full of things you enjoy doing and a reminder to make sure that you do them often.

Now, this is just my interpretation of the two lists and many might argue that there is no difference.  Either way, I’m going to start a “Happy List” and work on doing the things that end up on the list as often as possible.

Happy List

I don’t have my “Happy List” finished by a long shot.  In fact, I just have a few things on it right now; but I plan to add to it over the next few weeks.  The great thing about these lists is that you can add to them any time you choose.

The Beginning of My Happy List

1. Hug and kiss my hubby more often.
2. Say I love you to my loved ones.
3. Spend more quality time with my grandsons.
4. Plan family time with my daughter and my son.
5. Contact old friends that I haven’t talked to in a long time.
6. Get a massage.
7. Get a mani/pedi regularly.
8. Watch more sunsets.
9. Take photos of something different.
10. Make new friends.
11. Learn to paint with acrylics.
12. Write poetry.
13. Put old photos into albums.
14. Travel to Colorado.
15. Travel to Red River.
16. Go to concerts.
17. Travel to a state I haven’t been to before.

I think this is a great start and I plan to keep adding.

My Bucket List

That’s not to say I haven’t had my own “Bucket List” – at least in my mind.  There are a few crazy things I’d love to do.

1. Travel to Australia and Ireland.
2. Win a photography contest.  (Of course, I have to enter one first.)
3. Visit all the national parks.
4. Attend a race at every NASCAR track.
5. Go sailing on a sail boat that is staffed.
6. Visit Maine and New Hampshire.
7. Visit Canada.
8. Learn to make stain glass.

Some of these are possible and some are much more difficult. I haven’t decided if I should add these to my “Happy List” or keep them on a special “Bucket List”.

Share Your List

Do you have a “Bucket List” or a “Happy List”?  Do you think they are the same?

I’d love it if you’d share something from your list in the comments below.  Maybe we can encourage each other to work on a few items on our lists.

Live Like You’re Dying

Tim McGraw’s song “Live Like You’re Dying” reminds us not to wait until it’s too late to work on our lists and that it’s never too late to be a better person.

Here’s the YouTube version and I’ve included the lyrics below.

Live Like You’re Dying

He said
“I was in my early forties
With a lot of life before me
And a moment came that stopped me on a dime
I spent most of the next days
Looking at the x-rays
Talkin’ ’bout the options
And talkin’ ’bout sweet time”
I asked him
“When it sank in
That this might really be the real end
How’s it hit you
When you get that kind of news?
Man, what’d you do?”

He said
“I went skydiving
I went Rocky Mountain climbing
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I’d been denying”
And he said
“Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dying”

He said
“I was finally the husband
That most of the time I wasn’t
And I became a friend a friend would like to have
And all of a sudden going fishin’
Wasn’t such an imposition
And I went three times that year I lost my dad
I finally read the Good Book, and I
Took a good, long, hard look
At what I’d do if I could do it all again
And then

I went skydiving
I went Rocky Mountain climbing
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I’d been denying”
And he said
“Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dying
Like tomorrow was a gift
And you’ve got eternity
To think about
What you’d do with it
What could you do with it
What did I do with it?
What would I do with it?

Skydiving
I went Rocky mountain climbing
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fumanchu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I watched an eagle as it was flying”
And he said
“Someday I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dying
To live like you were dying
To live like you were dying”