It's absolutely amazing how difficult this was for me to make. When I
close my eyes and consider what I have and what I would like to have, I enter a
calm, peaceful state of being with only one realization: I don't want anything.
I don't need anything.
When I close my eyes, the most honest image I can imagine is a beach at
sunset, with me and my loved one walking hand in hand. That's it. That's all I
need. I live in honest simplicity. My life is not invested in materialism and
I'm happy with that. To me, life and health are the most important of all
gifts.
What would I like to do whole-heartedly in my last days? I find myself
satisfied. I have lived and I have loved. I have realized my
dreams.
I don't have a desire to achieve anything else, but a list is what I
need, so a list is what I give:
- Resign. Obviously I won't
have time to work and do the list.
- Visit a few places in SA
I've always wanted to go to but never had the opportunity. I'm not BIG on
this, so I'd like to get it over and done with! I don't want to do road
trips, so I'd like to fly to the places furthest away and hopefully drive
short distances and make a lot of pit stops. I don't want to rush
everywhere. I want to take my time.
- Stand on a mountain and
scream as loud as I possibly can, probably the Drakensberg. It's one of
the places I want to visit (See # 2). Of course, I can't scream. My voice
disappears on me. So, I'm going to do this to the best of my ability when
I'm high (literally high), on top of the world, i.e. my top, not the top
of any given mountain.
- Meet Johnny Depp. Well, I
assume this is expected of me to meet someone 'famous'. Then it'll have to
be Johnny Depp. Why? Alice in Wonderland, of course. I just loved that
story, the nonsense and his movie, and Depp as the Mad Hatter! I just want
to hear what his life philosophy is.
- Have lunch or dinner with
Nigella. Of course, she’s making the food. Yes! I just want to taste if
her food is really worth the finger-licking and “ooh-aah” business, or for
that matter, worth the effort of stealing down to the fridge in the middle
of the night for a midnight snack. We can do this with Johnny Depp. Get it
over and done with in one appointment.
- Learn to play the
piano. I REALLY WANT TO PLAY THE PIANO.
- Buy a 6 and 12 stringed
guitar and teach my son to play, just because he loves music so
much.
- Go on a luxury Mediterranean
cruise (western and eastern).
- Return to Zimbabwe,
Bulawayo, Paddonhurst … and cry for my loss, for my dad and for Jennifer.
- Move to the coast. I love
the sea. I wouldn't mind watching it every day. It not only inspires me,
it also makes me humble.
- Write a few more books. The
sea will be my inspiration.
- Paint again. Just one or two
beautiful oil paint canvasses.
- Drive a powerful car on a
highway as fast as I have the nerve to go. If I survive, I'll do #14. If I
don't, my daughter will do #14 for me.
- Close my Facebook account and get rid of all other evidence of me on the internet. Well, obviously when I'm gone, I'm gone.
That’s it! That’s the bucket list. I can't think of anything else. I
imagine many things can be added to it, but I'm certain that at this age, the
less I do, the better it is for me.
