Meg Casey

My dearest Jackie, who breaks all the rules, brought me a birthday gift tonight.  This rockin’ Celtic T-shirt fits me like a glove, and resonates at exactly the same frequency of my little Irish soul. I am never taking this shirt off!

The words around the heart say:  Like all things that are precious to us, we tend to keep our emotions under lock and key.  Love itself is far too beautiful a gift not to share with everyone.  

After a dinner of perfectly grilled kebabs, kick butt fish stew and the best carrot salad this side of north Africa, after a homemade ice cream cake that beat any other I have ever tasted, we sat in a circle and they, my beloved tribe helped me to create my list.  My list of things to do before I turn forty.  What’s beautiful about this exercise is that in adding an item to my list they pledged to do something (big or small) to help me get it done, to be my a co-conspirator, an angel to assist me, to hold my hands and jump feet first with me into the wild and messy river of my life.

In the spirit of love for them, in the spirit of my love for this life, I embrace this to do list, this plan.  I hearby pledge to wrap my heart around these items and sink into the joyfulness of them.

1. Take a kayak lesson on the Potomac
2. Learn to throw a pot
3. Perform at an open mic night
4. Sing a duet with  sweet Andy McD
5. Learn to Irish step dance
6. Go see Step Afrika
7. Take Max to see Sweet Honey in the Rock
8. Start to build my Goddess garden I have been dreaming of
9. Paint my living room and hallway
10. Create (and dare I say perfect) a gluten-free pizza dough recipe.  (Homemade pizza and Eric’s homemade bread are the only two things that will tempt me off my healthy gluten free path.  This gets me 50% of the way there! )
11. Explore acupuncture and my calling as a healer
12. Start that girls’ (age 8-11) knitting club I have been talking about
13. Ride a roller coaster
14. Stay a night at the Purple Fiddle
15. Learn to swim
16. Run a 10K
17. Learn to count to ten in three African languages
18. Finally master the f’in F chord
19. Teach Max to knit (my sweet boy added this to my list, saying he would help by doing the learning!)
20. Go out to hear live music at least ten times (this is an easy one which just makes me feel productive!)
21. Figure out how to live migraine free

Wanna jump in with me?  What do you think I might do in this crazy wild messy year before I turn 40?  Lets do it together.