by Lesley Mason

Created on: July 19, 2008

There are thousands of things I want to do: places I yearn to visit, experiences I hope I'll have, people I'd like to meet, family & social aspirations, career ambitions and on and on...

How does one narrow down the huge richness of potential into just 10 "things to do"?

Perhaps by turning most of them into things to do on a daily basis: not just achievements to be ticked off, but contributions to an overall way of living.

In that light, I want:

1. TO LIVE PASSIONATELY

Passion is often derided as a negative emotion, frowned upon as a failing of the lovelorn or the demented. How narrow a view that is. Olympic sprinter Kris Akabussi in his motivational sessions speaks inspiringly of "Pride, Passion, and a Can-do Attitude". This, he believes, is what makes champions of the also-ran hopefuls.

Sport is not my thing. But in every area of the life that I have chosen, I aim to live up to that ideal. My day-job is not my life, but I was proud to have a colleague tell me recently that I have a clear passion for the work. My home-life, my relationships, my endeavours to become a writer, my wanting to see every last unimaginable corner of this glorious planet are all things to be pursued with the same passionate enthusiasm and belief in the ability to do it, to get there, to be that person.

2. TO BE FRIVOLOUS

Ah, but all this passionate endeavour can be exhausting! There comes a time, when the pursuit of whatever it is needs to be put on hold. A time to play hooky. A time to have fun, purely for the sake of having fun. Not to learn, not to network, not to bond - although all of those might easily result - but purely and simply to kick back and laugh at the sheer absurdity of existence.

I want to throw snowballs. Build sand-castles. Play the story-telling game. I want to wear pretty frocks and sparkly jewels. Jump the waves. Eat cream-cakes. Yes, and as the sage Nadine Stair said: pick daisies and ride merry-go-rounds.

Going barefoot is my default setting, and word-plays delight me. I want to continue to read silly books as well as serious ones; and to watch funny stuff on the telly. To send cards and poems to friends for no reason at all.

3. TO BE JOYFUL

What exactly is JOY? Such an old-fashioned concept, that has been all-but smothered under the cement and silicon of the modern world. Joy is that one step beyond happiness. That moment when something strikes you so utterly that everything else just vanishes for a moment and you feel LIGHT and ALIVE.

Joy appears to have been banished

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