The reminiscence bump is well documented in psychology. Basically it states that people can recall many more concrete memories up until they're 25 years old than later. This means that decades of our life are just filed away never to be retrieved again. When I take a look at the lives most of us are leading this is not surprising. If you are caught in a rut, going about daily life and work and doing the same things over and over there's simply no reason for your brain to go through the trouble to save it for recollection. A bucket list, especially a time limited one, can remedy that. Although I haven't written anything lately I have completed a few of my items on my list and I'm glad I did because what I got in return is concrete memories with images, sounds, smells and in some cases touch. I can recollect them because they represent a break from the "same old same old". The bucket list beckons quietly to take a break and experience something new like:
- sailing in gale force winds
- hearing a whale breathe
- feeling like James Bond
- the elation of seeing a wild leopard and feeling your heart in your throat when you are sure you just heard a leopard and you're alone and not inside a closed room
- tracking lions on foot and experiencing how fascination and trust can completely replace fear even in a moment when fear would be appropriate
- looking into the eyes of baby hyenas and being surprised by their cuteness
- singing away sea sickness
- learning that it's not a good thing to be a tree when a teenage elephant throws a tantrum
- sleeping in a tree house on a windy night
So take that pen, write it down, set a date and have fun collecting memories worth keeping.
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