‘Living life to the full’

I have lots of hobbies and interests including books, poetry etc. I also love volunteering and have a small seasonal job which I enjoy and pays a little. However my DH and I love travel and have been to lots of distant and nearby places. If you are able to do the things you enjoy whatever they may be and you don't have to do stuff you don't enjoy then you are living life to the full. It's no use doing things that other people enjoy but you don't, where does that get you!

Made me think of a friend this morning. She was annoyed that the new pool where she wanted to swim no longer lets the public swim after 9.30 as kids come in.I said she could come with me to my local pool but she won't because they charge £2.50 whereas her pool is free for pensioners.She is a wealthy woman.She could be doing anything, travelling,joining David Lloyd pool,etc.but won't spend her money.

Rocketstop - that was lovely.

I don't have a bucket list anymore....only had one thing on it and I have done that. I don't have a passport anymore as I have no wish to travel now. Living life to the full is very much open to the interpretation of each individual mind. Everyone's idea of happiness is different. Yesterday a young swan waddled to see me when she saw me in my garden next to my boat. I used to feed her when she was still with her parents. We had a conversation.. must have looked so strange to anyone who saw. I talked to her and she made swan noises and reacted. I want for nothing more in life than days like that. I am trying to show how living life to the full is so different for everyone. Living life slowly and simply is wonderful. You see more than when you are rushing around

I am partially retired, still have work, my lovely partner, my children and Grandchildren. I am content, so do not feel the need for a bucket list.
Oh I have also jumped out of a aeroplane on my own and not tandem. Just something I wanted to do at the time. My partner us a marathon runner which he enjoys. Not something he has to do, he only runs selective marathons now as injuries are more as he gets older. When I am able to retire fully, I intend to enjoy it and not feel the pressure to live life to the full.

I worked in palliative care some years ago and many patients were not interested in "bucket lists" they just wanted life to be as it were before their prognosis.

I know that you have financial and other problems to contend with
Luckygirl What little I know of "the other problems" has been listed on GN threads, but now you've informed me of yet other problems of which I didn't need to know. IMO that sort of information is extremely personal and certainly not appropriate for a public forum, even if we're supposed to be anonymous.
Sorry, but PM is the only way to express private comments.

Regardless of how you fill your day I think if you are happy in whatever you do you are living your own particular life to the full. One person might want to be running marathons and flinging themselves out of aeroplanes and if this means happiness to them thanks great. Another person is happy being at home, reading a book, cooking a meal from scratch and enjoying it with a glass of wine and that to is great. I actually feel that someone who has to fill every minute that they are awake with experiences is actually running away from an inner unhappiness.x

I could sit at the kitchen table doing Sudoku for hours, reading newspaper, potter e delay.

I've recently got a grip so the housework is less overwhelming.

Regarding living life to full, I am working on my body so I'm as for as I can be. Hashimoto's led to 5st weight gain. Lost 2.5st. Today went up cable car on Mt Teide. Much better,less breathless than previous trip to Mt Etna.
Living life to tbe full to me means taking part and being able to choose, not letting life pass me by. My highlights are bridge holidays with bridge friends. I potter and relax a lot dont drink but like to be able to do things. Not explaining well but it means making best of my chouces

Top of my "bucket list" is to wake up each morning, and as long as I continue to do so I am "living my life to the full"

Sometimes we escape to foreign climes, sometimes we jump (?) in the car and drive out for lunch or book what looks like a nice English hotel (boy have we found some shockers, but also some very nice surprises) for a few days away.

We only have one life and its not a rehearsal this is it, if I feel like laying in the sofa and surfing GN (exactly what I am doing at the momen) then so be it.

gilly, that's a good idea and first would come gilly for coping.

And, no, you dont need a shake - you are doing brilliantly.

Rocket stop you made me cry, both with what you said and how you said it. Do you mind if I copy it, just for myself please.

Maybe another phrase should be at the forefront of our minds - count your blessings.

My grandmother was fond of saying that and the saying is as relevant today as it was many years ago.

Rocketstop my sort of philosophy well put

Living life to the full is whatever makes your life full. It's doing what you want and what makes you happy. My lovely DIL is always trying to get us to go away or do this or that but I am a home bird and quite happy pottering about here. The most important thing is to be yourself, what suits one doesn't suit another.

Living life to the full is a varied description ...some of my friends love being at home, near to their grandchildren, reading, even in one case, writing a book …...one has very large dogs and lives on a farm so never has the chance to go anywhere ...she has been to Australia years ago and now is quite happy to stay where she is. I think its an entirely individual thing ! I never had the chance to travel, but lived in both France and on a Spanish island ...no need for a holiday. Now my husband has died and I had a small inheritance from a relative, I have been on a couple of solo holidays and am going on another soon ...trying to see some of the world and have some experiences before I die ..at 73 who knows how long I have left ? then, when I cannot go anywhere else I will be quite happy to settle down with some knitting and the crossword or Dignitas ….depending on how much care is going to cost by then …….

I get a kick on a daily basis from achieving something on my 'to do' list. Procrastination is regularly the name of my game and sometimes my ticked box has only taken me ten minutes. Pathetic really but the relief/pleasure carries me through the day. I seriously enjoy retirement - always dreaded it - but the joy of doing whatever I want at any time is bliss for me. I certainly acknowledge that my reasonable health is a great contributory factor. So far, so blessed.

The world is such a noisy place. Loud, haranguing voices lecturing me to hustle, to improve, build, strive, yearn, acquire, compete, and grasp for more. For bigger and better. Sacrifice sleep for productivity. Strive for excellence. Go big or go home. Have a huge impact in the world. Make your life count.

But what if I just don’t have it in me. What if all the striving for excellence leaves me sad, worn out, depleted? Drained of joy. Am I simply not enough?

What if I never really amount to anything when I grow up—beyond mom and sister and wife? But these people in my primary circle of impact know they are loved and I would choose them again, given the choice. Can this be enough?

What if I never build an orphanage in Africa but send bags of groceries to people here and there and support a couple of kids through sponsorship? What if I just offer the small gifts I have to the world and let that be enough?

What if I don’t want to write a cookbook or build a six figure business or speak before thousands? But I write because I have something to say and I invest in a small community of women I care about and encourage them to love and care for themselves well. Because bigger isn’t always better and the individual matters. She is enough.

What if I just accept this mediocre body of mine that is neither big nor small? Just in between. And I embrace that I have no desire to work for rock hard abs or 18% body fat. And I make peace with it and decide that when I lie on my deathbed I will never regret having just been me. Take me or leave me.

What if I am a mediocre home manager who rarely dusts and mostly maintains order and makes real food but sometimes buys pizza and who is horrified at moments by the utter mess in some areas of her home? Who loves to menu plan and budget but then breaks her own rules and pushes back against rigidity. Who doesn’t care about decorating and fancy things. Whose home is humble but safe.

What if I am not cut out for the frantic pace of this society and cannot even begin to keep up? And see so many others with what appears to be boundless energy and stamina but know that I need tons of solitude and calm, an abundance of rest, and swaths of unscheduled time in order to be healthy. Body, spirit, soul healthy. Am I enough?

What if I am too religious for some and not spiritual enough for others? Non-evangelistic. Not bold enough. Yet willing to share in quiet ways, in genuine relationship, my deeply rooted faith. And my doubts and insecurities.

This will have to be enough.

And if I have been married 21 years and love my husband more today than yesterday but have never had a fairy tale romance and break the “experts” marriage rules about doing a ton of activities together and having a bunch in common. And we don’t. And we like time apart and time together. Is our marriage good enough?

What if I am a mom who delights in her kids but needs time for herself and sometimes just wants to be first and doesn’t like to play but who hugs and affirms and supports her kids in their passions? A mediocre mom who can never live up to her own expectations of good enough, let alone yours.

What if I embrace my limitations and stop railing against them? Make peace with who I am and what I need and honor your right to do the same. Accept that all I want is a small, slow, simple life. A mediocre life. A beautiful, quiet, gentle life.

I think it is enough.

This may be a bit long for some, but someone sent me this article by Krista O Reilly and it goes on to say that everyone has different ideas of fulfillment. It's an interesting read.
Will post it under this one in case it's too long for one post.

I'm put off by all the hassle at airports etc as well anniezzz09 I'm much happier visiting places in France now.

I think it means something different to everyone - my 87 year old husband has now said he no longer wants to go on holiday again and I have to accept that.
Am glad we recently moved to a retirement apartment in the town centre so I can go to the local theatre/cinema if I want to without any trouble

Such a positive post Absent.

I think perhaps I need a damned good shaking !

I think it’s just so hard to see the positives when things start to get on top of you .

But perhaps Instead of focusing on all the negatives in my life (and there are rather a lot at the moment) I need to try to look towards the positives .

I was given a little book/ journal for my recent birthday and tonight I am going to spend a few minutes listing all the positive things in my life , however small .

*Hetty58) I do appreciate your posts, they speak to me! There's a trend now for experiences rather than things I gather, which is interesting but leads me to one of my current moans: that everyone has to do everything!

I used to want to travel but I'm put off by the huge number of people everywhere and the hassle of travel. Being cramped in a tin can in the sky with 00s of others detracts from the destination for me!

So I find living life to the full now means appreciating every day, indulging my love of art and at last having the time to develop my skills, walking in nature whatever the weather and curling up with a good book plus some good quality chocolate!

I can be blissfully happy just pottering about in the garden, doing a bit of pruning or planting. It won't be long until the weather improves!

My 'to do' list when I retired was things that I'd put off when 'too busy'. I soon realised that I just didn't want to do them!