So long! Farewell!

NEWSFLASH: I am a bookworm. The only plan I have for my future home is a room big enough to be an impressive library. I get excited whenever I pass a bookstore. I get a high off of library book sales. I wish I still got Scholastic book order forms. I transformed my closet into another bookshelf because the one my dad had built me filled up way too fast. My boyfriend wants to build me a bookshelf someday (plus he’s agreed to a library). I love reading books, writing books, looking at books, smelling books, buying books, and flipping through books. That being said, I think that sometimes, being a bookworm can be a dangerous thing. So many times in the past (especially high school and college) I was perfectly content to sit alone in my room with the characters in my books while others that I knew were out making memories with one another. Now I don’t regret my decisions in the past—not at all!—and I don’t belittle anyone who would rather stay in on a Friday with their favorite book and a cup of tea—that is one of my absolute favorite things to do! But I’ve come to realize that I don’t want to just read about love and life and adventures… I want to live it. I think I’ve managed to do that pretty well—I’ve done a lot of living in my first 24 years while still making time for my characters and books too.

I think it is so important to read. It doesn’t matter what! Fantasy, biographies, how-to books, young adult fiction, romance, horror, sci-fi… anything! I would try to not be prejudiced and say it doesn’t matter—paper books or eBooks—but I’ve tried the Kindle for almost a year now and I still hate it. It is important to read… but it is so much more important to live.

That was a long introduction to justify using a quote by an author by the name of John Green. I won’t say that he’s one of my new favorite authors because I’ve only been able to read one of his books so far—The Fault in Our Stars (shock shock). That being said, I think he is a highly intelligent man who is extremely wise for his young age and he has some great advice to live by. I used one of his quotes the night before my college graduation a year and a half ago—a time of evolution and transitions… a time that I find myself going through once again.

"Here is my advice. Study broadly and without fear. Learn a language if you can, because that will make your life more interesting. Read a little bit every day. But most importantly, try to surround yourself with people you like and make cool stuff with them. In the end, what you do isn't going to be nearly as interesting or important as who you do it with." 
~John Green

With almost all of my newfound friends now out of the country as of today, I want to dedicate this blog post to them… whether they see it or not. 

So! Without further ado, here is a look at the people who had a part to play in my first year teaching in China.

The Students

The first group of people that directly affected my time here in China was my students! I admit (and I'm sure you can recall a few blog posts back in August) I was terrified to come over to China and teach at a university. I had never taught anything before other than giving a few lectures on specialized topics that I was passionate about and that I knew a lot about. I had never been in charge of a group before nor charged with the education of others around me. Some people who teach ESL in foreign countries do not take their jobs seriously, but I do. English is a uniting factor that allows us to communicate and understand one another. I was responsible for these kids and I did not want to fail them. I taught a total of eight classes--three oral English classes for freshmen English majors and five oral English classes for post graduates. Some classes seemed thoroughly entertained by me while others just couldn't be bothered. It was a huge learning process for me to see what worked, what didn't work, what the students enjoyed, and what they found to be boring. By the end of the year, I was proud to say that I was super close with all but two classes and I was really sad to see my groups move on.

My absolute favorite class--A3 post-graduates
These guys were so talkative, their English was incredible. I knew them all by name, they laughed at my jokes, and they threw a party for me on the last day of class. I am going to miss these goofballs so much!

English 132, my freshmen... a bit shy in the beginning of the school year, they finally started to open up in the last few months which just thrills me.

133, my craziest group of freshmen, these guys were a hoot! Some of my favorite students were in this class like Lyn, Gloria, Cassie, and Jungle (among many others with equally fantastic names). I am so sad I won't have this group next year.

My A5 English class--they were a bit quiet but when you got them going, they just kept going! Their exams and presentations were always super well done and usually hilarious... Way to go!

My beloved B1 class of only 8 out at Xiasha. I hated going to Xiasha but these guys always made it worthwhile. Because the class was so small, I got to know them all and I was just able to sit down and talk with them.

Team HZ

This group of crazies is my main support group over here in Hangzhou. There are some majorly different personalities and I’ve managed to get closer with some more than others but all in all I truly do enjoy the time I spent with everyone. The group is made up of James, Nate, Steve, Karin, Hannah R., Nathan, Other Adam, DH, Hannah S., and (obviously) my Adam. They all work together and have known each other for at least a year before I waltzed into the picture. They accepted me into the group when they did not even have to look my way. They treated me like a member of the team from practically day one (granted, this might have something to do with Adam). From parties, dinners, studies, and just simply get togethers, I’ve gotten to know them all by name and personality from talking Sweden and runes with Karin, sitting together with Steve and just chatting during our medical exams at the beginning of the year, or talking books with James. These people have come from different walks of life and each have something vital to add to the group—and to me. I am so thankful to find a group so willing to open up their arms and hearts and invite me to be with them.

Christmas 2013
Back Row: Adam, me, Hannah S., Nathan, Nate, James
Front Row: Other Adam, Karin, Hannah R., DH, Steve, Joanna (Steve's fiancee)

 The Kids

Sometimes when you are in a stressful situation, you are forced to make connections with each other. Sometimes it is your first group of friends when you go away to school for the first time or a new job or a new city or country. They are not your first choice of companions but for the time being, they will do. That was not the case with these crazy kids. It took a bit of time for us to gather together but when we were together hijinx ensued. At Christmas parties, we danced together. On Friday nights, we would eat street food together. We were there to laugh at each other, share personal stories, dance with each other, travel together, and simply share an exciting piece of our lives with one another. It was dancing on tables during KTV and making fun of each other that helped us all get through the insanity of teaching and living in China. You need a support system… even better if that support system can be your friends who will dance through life with you. And yes, I do consider them my friends…

The Ladies| Hannah R., me, Hannah S.
The Gents| Other Adam, Nathan, Adam, DH
Some of the finest people I know!! And the craziest...

 The Ladies

I haven’t been one to have “girlfriends” all too often. In high school I was friends with three or four girls but the minute that I moved away for college, I lost all connection with them. My freshman year of college, I was really close with a group of about five girls who all lived on the same floor in my dorm building but again, once they graduated, we lost touch. My last few years, I had two ladies that I still consider to be some of my very best friends—Rachel and Becky—and I’ve managed to keep in touch with them fairly well (I’m really bad at it if my track record doesn’t show that much). While in Disney, I hung out with the girls in my apartment but I really only keep in touch with a few ladies from there too. I have a harder time connecting with women than I do men (I connect the best with gay men, it would seem… again, look at that track record!) so it did take me a bit of time to really connect with any of the girls over here in Hangzhou.

It was our trip to Yangshuo that really brought us together. Major heart to heart chats with both the Hannahs. Singing songs on the back of a motorbike—all three of us piled on there! Jumping on couches during KTV. Experiencing Yangshuo, dancing in each other’s apartments, pillow talk, heart to hearts, campfires, sleeping outside in the cold… these two ladies have been wonderful additions to my China adventure.

Taking a break from our biking adventure in Yangshuo

 Hannah S. has been like a big sister to me. She knows so much about China (not to mention she actually speaks Chinese), life, and relationships. She is a strong young woman who has a soft spoken and silent strength that I truly admire and her kindness and willingness to be there for people and help is something I would like to try and emulate more in my own life.

Irish dancing in Hannah's apartment... Also the only photo of just me and her... How did that happen?!

 Hannah R. is a girl after my own heart and I am so happy to have such a wonderful, colorful person in my life. Whether she is taking selfies, painting, reading, or writing, I just know it will be something beautiful (I have four original paintings of hers just to prove it to you)! She has an amazing philosophy on life. Whether we are hiking through the Himalayas or silently sitting on the beaches of Malaysia and just staring up at the stars or down at the bioluminescence, I have come to like and respect her. Every opportunity in her life is an adventure… I am thrilled to have met someone who feels the same way about life as I do.

 The Big Four

Like I said earlier, I connect better with guys than I do girls. Not sure why, I just do. My first connections I made out here in Cangqian were with these three guys—Adam, Other Adam, and DH. Other Adam knocked on my door my first night in town and invited me to hang out with them at DH’s new apartment. The rest is really history. Adam and I started dating, I got to know Other Adam and DH more, I met Hannah R. and Nathan, and discovered the beauty that is street food. Most Fridays were spent around a street food table, funny stories being swapped over a beer, and Settlers being played out (God, I’m awful at that game). Not only did we enjoy spending time together in Cangqian and Hangzhou but we also traveled together. The Adams and I spent National Holiday together by going up to Qingdao and Dalian and, more recently, the Big Four went to ZhangJiaJie together. We spend time together well, we travel well together (other than DH’s snoring which had be considering murder… Kidding… I’m kidding…), and, all in all, we enjoy each other’s company. They were the ones that bought me a cake for my birthday and they were the ones that I wanted to spend my Friday nights and holidays with… Truly great guys who I will miss so much.

Making our way through ZhangJiaJie National Park

 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I wrote a letter to a few people before they left and in it I said something that always makes myself feel better in times like this—times of change:

Lives are always changing, and sometimes we wish that things could just stay the same. But our story isn’t over yet! The book is far from over… This is just a chapter in our lives that is ending and there’s a whole hatful of chapters left with new characters, twists and turns, and adventures for all of us!

I truly do believe that. For some of us, our roles in each other’s lives are now complete. But for others, I truly do believe that our paths will cross again. I want to thank you all for being a part of the most exciting chapter in my life so far… Here’s to meeting again sometime down the line! 

Until Next Time,

Amanda

The China Bucket List: The First 10 Months

I am obsessed with My Life List. I first read about a "life list" in a Chicken Soup for the Soul book when I was nine years old. The next minute, I had a piece of paper out and I wrote down my very first life list with only five things on it:

1.Own a horse (that has since been taken off!)

2. Go to London

3. Climb the Eiffel Tower

4. See the Sphinx and Pyramids

5. Climb the Great Wall of China

Sadly, I do not know what happened to that original list--since then it has gone through many transformations and I have gone from just five items on the list to 265 items (as of 6/17/14). I have completed exactly 100 things on this list (I just realized that now and I am super excited... I feel like I need to have a Bucket List party!) and I managed to complete nine things in the first 10 months of living in China.

Before coming over to China, I made up a China Bucket List--I took the things from My Life List that I thought I could complete while living in China (you can see it in a post I wrote back in August, right here!)... some of the things I actually managed to complete were on that China edition of the bucket list and some of them were not! Some I never thought I would be able to accomplish in China... So here is a look at the nine things I was able to do in China. I've included the number it is on My Life List, what it is, the date (if I wrote it down), a story behind it, and some photos if they were taken. Enjoy! It was so much fun to relive each of these exciting moments--the moment I get to cross something off My Life List!

#158: Try durian

October 2, 2013

Durian is just one of those things that you cannot avoid when you come to visit China, whether it is just for a few weeks or over a year. A spikey green/yellow fruit, it looks similar to all the other bizarre looking fruit in the markets (seriously, have you seen dragon fruit?). Like so many things in life, looks can be deceiving… But in this case, something that looks that crazy, tastes and smells just as equally crazy.

This fruit is a sign that God has a sick sense of humor... one that I am not too fond of...

 For those of you who have heard tales of durian’s infamy (I first heard about it on Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern) or those who have been able to witness it firsthand know that durian has a very distinct look, taste, and especially smell. It was the one food that Andrew Zimmern could not swallow (literally) and it is one of the “must have” foods if you are living in China (the other being stinky tofu… something I have not tried yet). With so much stigma surrounding this one piece of fruit, you can be darn sure that it was put on My Life List long ago and when I saw the opportunity to cross it off, I took it!

Andrew Zimmern with the infamous little fruit that even HE doesn't like!

 It was my first big holiday in China—National Holiday—and it was my first big trip (first of many) around China—Qingdao, Dalian, and Dandong. I traveled with both the Adams and our first stop was the beer capital of China, Qingdao (where Tsingtao beer is from). We were in Qingdao for three days and it was on the final day that we found a man selling some durian slices on the street. I paid my 10元 and unwrapped the two slices (now I know why they wrap it all the time!).

I smelled it (first big mistake).

 I ate it (second big mistake).

 

 I hated it.

 I’ve heard people describe the smell/taste to be a mixture of rotten onions and turpentine. To me, it tasted like rotten eggs and regret.

After I gagged for a few seconds and after a beer in a bag (a Qingdao specialty), I was able to laugh about it, cross it off the bucket list, and smile knowing that I had passed through some bizarre initiation that all foreigners must go through… now to find a clueless newcomer to enact my revenge…

#187: Kiss in the rain

Sadly, I cannot put an exact date to this one, nor do I have any photos of it and that is okay.

For anyone who loves movies like Breakfast at Tiffany’s or watches any dramas from Korea or Taiwan, I’m sure you love a good kiss in the rain scene as much as I do! I’m not sure how old I was when I put this one on my List and I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to accomplish it (with my history…) but a girl could always dream. When Adam and I were first getting to know each other, we got to talking about My Life List and he read through it… he must have spotted #187 because he waited a week between our first date and our first kiss—it turns out he was waiting for it to rain! Trust me when I say, it is better than the movies… Just make sure you shower right away so the acid rain doesn’t eat through your clothes and onto your skin! 

#201: Go to the “fish doctor”

January 9, 2014

The very first thing to be crossed off from My Life List in 2014 was also the first thing crossed off during my Spring Festival trip with Hannah.  Our first stop on our month long journey all around Asia (China, Hong Kong, Nepal, and Malaysia) was the breathtakingly beautiful Yangshuo. Nestled along the shores of the Li River, winding pedestrian only streets weave through cafés, restaurants, hostels, and quaint little shops. It is like a storybook village nestled in a faerie land surrounded by sleeping giants. I have gone on and on about the natural beauty that is Yangshuo in a previous post that you can read over here!

The place is seriously one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to!

While we were wandering around, still bouncing with excitement over the fact that our amazing adventure was just beginning, we spotted one of the many “fish kissing” spas. Also known as the “fish doctor” or just a fish spa, you pay 15元 (about $2.50) for 30 minutes before you put your bare feet into warm water just filled with little brown fish. Immediately, they jump on your feet, nibbling away at all the dead skin on your feet. It tickled and then it hurt a little bit and then a fish would swim between my toes and I would start laughing and screaming again. This is one of those crazy, cooky things that you see everywhere in China and other parts of Asia but seem so exotic and different to Americans… and it is these sorts of things that I just love about living in China!

I thought I had lost these photos when my iPhone got stolen... These are never before seen!!

 Of course, since then, I have learned that these fish spas might not be the safest thing to do. I’ve read online and I’ve been informed by multiple friends that different diseases have been spread through the kissing fish spas… However, I am perfectly fine. I would still recommend it if you are ever in Asia somewhere.

#233: Cruise down the Li River

January 12, 2014

Whenever I was a young girl and thought of China, I always thought of the natural side of the country, not the pollution or crowds or big cities (though they certainly exist!). I imagined tall, looming, shear dropping cliffs and winding rivers with bamboo boats… I didn’t know it, but I was imagining the mountains of Yangshuo and the Li River.

Location of the 20元 painting along the Li River!

Upon arriving in Yangshuo, I had no clue that it was right along the Li River. I thought that someday I would need to make a special trip to the south of China in order to accomplish this goal. Needless to say I was thrilled when I learned that I was staring at and walking along the Li River.

My happiness quickly evaporated each time someone came up to us and asked, “Bamboo?” trying to lure us into taking an overpriced bamboo boat ride down the Li River. I was quickly coming to dislike the Li River and that did not make me happy—this was a place that I had imagined since I was a child and I was not going to allow a band of old women trying to make some money off of the tourists ruin it for me!

Hannah caught my disdain for the bamboo ladies on camera...

 We hiked for about 5 hours throughout the day, following the river and trying to dodge the old ladies that would call out to us or just start following us (seriously, there was one woman who literally ran after us for over an hour). In the end, we ended up having to hop into one of the bamboo boats anyway because the hiking path ended (luckily this time, Hannah did not crash into the Yulong river and smash her face up). I had wanted to ride in a boat along the Li River, but I did not want to be bombarded and bullied into it.

Our stalker... We began to call her Gollum after about an hour...

The ride along the river was amazing (cold, but amazing... and sadly, no photos). The mountains that run along the shore just tower above you and make you feel so small and insignificant and yet part of something so much bigger than yourself. I desperately forced myself to enjoy the boat ride because it was something I had always hoped to do… But to have to be forced into it because the path literally ends at the river did take away from the excitement and joy I had hoped to feel. 

#52: See the Largest Seated Buddha

January 16, 2014

This was something that was nearly 10 years in the making for me. In 2005, Travel Channel aired a show called “5 Takes: Pacific Rim” where five photo journalists traveled all throughout the Pacific Rim and simply documented their adventures (as if that is not a dream job for all of us!). While they were in Hong Kong, I remember some of the members of the show went to see the world’s largest seated outdoor bronze Buddha (what a title!) and instantly, it was put on my bucket list at the age of 15.

Tian Tan, as it is officially called, is seated peacefully and silently on the top of a mountain, surrounded by forests, and looking out over the ocean. I have always said that my “heaven on Earth” has to be either up in the mountains, hidden in the woods, or along the seashore, so Tian Tan was like a sanctuary to me. Yes, it is the world’s largest seated Buddha but it is so much bigger than I imagined it to be! You see it in the distance and it just keeps growing in size and magnificence as you climb the 286 steps to the top. 

You have tourists, adventurers, photographers, monks, and believers all climbing up and making the same journey together. It was so surreal to watch the monks and pilgrims bowing and praying at the base of the statue, the eyes of the Buddha silently staring down at them. 

There is something that I just love when visiting pilgrim destinations or religious sites—there is always a sense of respect from everyone present, whether you are a believer or not. Yes, it was crowded at the top of the mountain and people were huffing and puffing their way up the mountain but the minute their eyes meet the partially opened eyes of the Buddha and the sun is shining down on them and the wind blows through their hair, there is a sense of wonder and peace. No one shouts or laughs or runs; everyone is whispering or (better yet) completely silent and just looking out over the natural world surrounding them… It was a wonderful breath of fresh air and a moment to relax before returning to the chaos that is China.

#3: Stand in the Indian Ocean

February 9, 2014

The first four things I ever put on my bucket list (after the first edition of only five things which I made when I was nine) was to stand in the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Arctic oceans. As a nine year old, I had no idea that my life would take the route that I am currently on and I didn’t know if these goals were at all plausible. The Atlantic was very close to me—just a drive across the state. The Pacific was a bit farther, but still, just across the country. I managed to do both of them before I was 13 years old. The Indian ocean, I wasn’t too sure until I knew I was coming to live in China… then I just knew, I had to get to the south somewhere and find the coast.

I ended up meeting that goal while visiting the island of Langkawi in Malaysia during Spring Festival. 

There isn’t too much to say about it—it was warm, wet, and blue. I was not a fan of Malaysia and I am never too thrilled to be at a beach… However, being in Malaysia and at a beach allowed me to cross off one of the very first things I ever put on my List… Now to figure out how I’m going to stand in the Arctic ocean…

#181: Live in another country (China)

February 28, 2014

Now most people over here in China who had read my bucket list were surprised that I had “Live in another country” on the list but had not crossed off yet. Yes, I was living in another country but technically it hadn’t been the first time. What do I mean by living in another country? Not just visiting for a week. I have to figure out the layout of the city I’m living in, work out transportation, go grocery shopping, go to the bank but hopefully never the doctor. I had lived in Sweden for a summer back in 2010 and that was my first taste of living on my own and taking care of myself (no dining hall?!?!) but that was only for a summer and I was with a study abroad program that would hold my hand for most things. Don’t get me wrong! I LOVED living in Sweden and I would go back in a heartbeat but I never really thought of it as actually living in another country on my own.

Look! A blonde Amanda!

Once I moved to Hangzhou I knew it would be for at least two years. Could I say, “I am living in another country!” after just a week? A month? What would be the ultimate goal—the marker that would declare that I had lived in another country for an actual amount of time? I decided on the six month mark: from August 28^th-February 28^th.

Now I won’t go into a full on rant about what it is like to not only live in another country but a country as bizarre, chaotic, and aggravating as China—I am already working on a post… a sort of “Year in Review” which you can look forward to in the coming weeks. You’ve been warned…

#139: Make my own Buffalo wings and eat them

March 1, 2014

I am a Buffalo gal… there is no doubt about it. I grew up drinking nothing but Loganberry soda at my grandmother’s house. Sponge candy still makes me way too happy. And I consider myself to be a wing connoisseur. Usually, anywhere that I travel to, I like to try their “Buffalo style” wings just to see how they really compare (yes I may or may not be a wing snob). In Buffalo, we have two main places to get wings—the Anchor Bar or Duff’s. Now we all know that the Anchor Bar may have originated the wing but Duff’s perfected it. I love wings. I can eat my weight in them… and then keep eating.

 VS

I’m not sure when I decided to put this on My Life List but the minute that Adam saw it on my List, he made it a reality.

For my birthday, I could have chosen to do anything—travel up to Shanghai, go to West Lake, eat at a really fancy restaurant, or stay at home and make wings. Adam got all the materials—wings and Frank’s hot sauce. That’s it. That’s all I need.

We battled with the spitting peanut oil. We laughed. We danced to Elvis, the Beatles, and the Who. We nibbled on cheese. We mashed some potatoes. We doused the fried wings in hot sauce. We gorged on wings, mashed potatoes, and watched Harry Potter. Perfection.

My first birthday away from home (and not at the Magic Kingdom) and it was quite a success! Our wing making ability is so good that we did it again just a few weeks ago for our friends, Adam and DH, as a sort of farewell sit down dinner. Now all I have to do is get Adam to Buffalo at some point to see how our wings compare to the originals!

#160: Make pottery

June 11, 2014

This was another random thing I put on My Life List years ago and I cannot remember when or why I did so. I do that on purpose: some things on my list are huge and monumental things that I’m not sure if I can ever accomplish (#17: Hike to Everest base camp) and others are pretty mundane (#151: Learn how to change a tire). Some I specifically remember when or why I added it to the List and, others, I’m not too sure.

I’ve always enjoyed going to historical parks or Renn Faires and watching the pottery (I’m always impressed by what people can do with their hands… and it makes me feel slightly inadequate). I’ve never seen “Ghost” but that pottery scene does sound pretty sexy. Seriously, I don’t know! I just love getting my hands dirty and I love creating things… even though I’m not good at art at all (I’ve attempted painting and drawing so many times in the hopes of being good).

While the Big Four was just wandering through downtown Hangzhou, DH led us to a pottery store filled with cups and plates and a little classroom! For just 98元 you get a lesson, a ball of clay, paint, enough time to create whatever you want, and a kiln to fire it up!

So the artistic-less ones dug our hands into the clay and we attempted to make something beautiful!

DH attempted a cup at first (something that I had thought of making too at first). He struggled. Long and hard. I actually thought what he had created kind of resembled a cup but eventually he ended up giving up and joined the rest of the class in making plates.

Adam and I had decided to make couples plates for each other (we try not to act like an obnoxious couple but sometimes we just can’t resist… and I would like to point out that it was Adam’s idea to make couples plates, not mine!). We set to work, trying desperately to copy what the teacher had just shown us… I think Adam remembered  a bit better because my plate ended up coming out kind of lopsided and the edges were all kind of nasty… Oh well! I know that I’m not artistic and I fully embrace it!

Adam carved in the class AW and AL around a heart (the same thing he once carved into a pizza) and I set to work on making owls. I love owls, they are my favorite animal. When Adam got back from his European adventure, he had bought me a bunch of owl statues and ornaments. I have owl slippers and owl pajamas. Owls are my cover photo on Facebook and everyone assumes that the two owls in the photo are me and Adam… so I decided to run with that! I made two little owls sleeping next to each other—I was surprised to see that it actually came out kind of cute!

After painting them, we handing our little creations to the teacher only to find out that we have to come back in three weeks to pick them up. Three weeks! Poor DH won’t even be in the country anymore… Hopefully we’ll be able to retrieve our plates and forever remember our challenging but enjoyable day… oh so enjoyable!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

And there you have it!! That is my 2013-2014 Life List review (yes, I know that I have the summer still and I imagine I'll be able to do a few things over the next few months but I wanted to look at the school year and what I was able to accomplish in the last 10 months). It's been fun, wild, and crazy. I managed to make my way to China (Hangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Qingdao, Dalian, Dandong, Yangshuo, ZhangJiaJie, Changsha), North Korea, Hong Kong, Nepal, and Malaysia thus far... so many more places to go!

It's been neat meeting a whole new group of people and hearing what they have to say about My Life List. I never know if people get tired of me saying, "Oh that's on my bucket list!" but my List always seems to make people smile. My hope is to inspire others to write down their goals, hopes, and dreams and read through that list often... and then make their dreams a reality! I'm always growing and evolving and changing, just like my life and just like my bucket list; it pushes me to suck the marrow out of every moment in life. It is such an important and vital aspect of who I am as a person, I even won an award for it this year!!

“I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately, I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, To put to rout all that was not life and not when I had come to die Discover that I had not lived.”

~ Henry David Thoreau

 

Until Next Time,

Amanda