Whether you want to admit it or not, life is short. And, the older you get, the harder it gets to get out into the world and do things.
Also, everyone’s opportunities are different as well. Some people have more money than others and if you have a family or a very demanding job, you might be able to scratch all that stuff you wanted to do off of your bucket list.
So do those things while you can!
“What life-altering things should every human ideally get to experience at least once in their lives?”
Here’s what AskReddit users had to say about this.
1. Look up in the sky.
“Go somewhere isolated enough at night that you can see the full skyscape, including the band of the Milky Way.
Don’t remember where exactly, but me and my dad found this volunteer-run observatory somewhere on a peak in Oregon. They had a giant scope operated by a few people, and some hobbyists and student who had their own gear they’d let you use, but the coolest shit was being able to look up with your own eyes and see part of the milky way.
I cannot describe to you the awe I felt. Everyone there was very passionate about astronomy and so helpful too, so the whole thing was an unforgettable experience.”
2. Make a difference.
“Being the person in a room that everyone else looks up to.
Whether it be as a teacher or anything else. Just knowing I could make a difference in some kid’s life was the best part of coaching tennis for me.”
3. No more debt.
“Being debt free.
I’ve paid off two credit cards this week and it feels so incredible. I cannot wait to pay off the other two.”
4. Under the sea.
“Scuba diving.
I promise you, it’s a completely different world down there and it’s not ours.
You’ll be amazed and maybe even get an understanding and a greater connection to our earth and all the living things on this chunk of rock floating through space.”
5. Become a master.
“The feeling of having mastered something. Piano, poetry, writing, some videogame, coding, anything really.
There is a special self knowledge that comes from having mastered something that everyone really needs to know.”
6. Sounds wonderful.
“Spending a day alone with no plans, completely at liberty, in a foreign city you’ve never been to before.”
7. Fight for your life.
“Fighting for one’s life in some form.
3 years ago I was in a river for the swim portion of a triathlon. Because of heavy rainfall the week prior, the current was moving incredibly quickly. The race organizers eventually cancelled the swim portion of the event but not until myself and about half the other competitors were already in the water.
About halfway through the swim, The current became too much and I was being carried downstream despite my strongest attempts to swim against it. It was at that moment that I was literally swimming for my life. It was terrifying at the moment, but an experience I’m really glad I had.”
8. Sounds interesting.
“I wish everyone got to experience Lucid dreaming at least once.
It’s such an amazingly interesting state to be in just for the fact that you’re inside of a dream.
You’re fully conscious that you’re now someone else and in a “body” that isn’t your physical body yet you can touch and feel the dream world as if it was the real world.”
9. You have to do it sometimes.
“Failure.
You’d be surprised how many people constantly have their life “fixed” for them and never have to fail at anything.
Failure allows us to learn coping skills, resilience, problem solving, determination … so many skills that many people today just don’t have.”
10. This is nice.
“Go into a nursing home and volunteer to sit with some of the loneliest residents.
Let them talk. Just listen.
You’ll learn so much and experience every emotion you know…and some you never felt before.”
11. Top of the world.
“Stand on top of a mountain.
One of my absolute life changing experiences is hiking a mountain in the fog.
Me and a friend hiked a few thousand feet, and when we hit the peak we had just come over the fog line. There was an old guy at the top with us, and he saw that we were in awe.
He pointed to the north east. “See that other mountain range poking out above the clouds? That’s Tahoe.”
Tahoe was 150 miles away, give or take.
Something about being exhausted after intense physical exertion, with your best friend, in a surreal landscape, and then having a seemingly impossible vision pointed out to you on top of that, was otherworldly.”
12. Do it by yourself.
“Travel alone, doesn’t need to be long.
But I think it requires a skill to be alone and feel comfortable about it. Not many people take the leap to go and/or don’t have the skill.
It is very valuable to feel comfortable being alone being in a crowd for example.”
13. Tough stuff.
“Being with a family member while they pass away. I know, I know….this sounds weird but I have experienced both and had so much more closure when I was able to be there when my grandmother passed away.
When my mom was in hospice and started declining and eventually passed away, the facility couldn’t even be bothered to call me UNTIL THE NEXT DAY.
I lived 10 minutes away, was the POC for all medical decisions and worked by entire life at the time around doing my best to be by her side when she passed.
I still feel so cheated and pissed off about it.”
14. Give it a shot!
“Eating healthy food for like two months straight. You never realize how shitty you feel if you’ve been feeling that way literally your entire life.
Also helps you realize how insanely addictive sugar/fast food is. Once you go back to it the cravings kick in immediately (at least in my experience).”
15. Isolation.
“Total isolation
I’m talking traveling out to a remote location far far away from civilisation and far away from anyone else
Just you and the world around you
All alone
And not another soul in sight
It’s such a bizarre yet powerful feeling. Here you are, completely free from the constraints of civilisation, free from your obligations, free from your routines. There’s nothing holding you back now except yourself. You’re experiencing life at its purest.
I went on one hell of a bush walk not too long ago that took me deep into a forest that very few people have been through. There was a moment where I was sitting on this fallen tree where it hit me just how truly far away and isolated I was. And with that, just how far away all my problems were too. Out here, it was just me and the trees.
It really seems to put life back into perspective when you inevitably have to head back and re-enter civilisation. The juxtaposition is something else.”
Now we want to hear from you!
What do you think we should all experience at least once in our lives?
Tell us what you think in the comments!