Bucket List

The proverbial bucket

I have never written down a list of things to do before I die. I don't know if I have even formulated one in my head before now. I mean, there are things that I want to do and see in my life, but some of the really important ones are also partly dependent on the choices of other people. For example, I am really looking forward to 2 weddings, that of my youngest brother and that of my youngest brother-in-law. Neither one is engaged or even dating anyone, BUT I look forward with an eye of faith to the happy days when our whole families are in the temple together to participate in those weddings. These are not things I can put on a bucket list because they are beyond the scope of my control.

However, now that I'm thinking about it, making a bucket list and deciding what I value most could be quite a valuable tool for planning my life. If these are things I truly want to accomplish, then I should be taking some sort of action to really get them done! I should have this posted on my fridge to let it motivate my choices!

The sweetness at the bottom of the pie (Flavia de Luz #1) by Alan Bradley

Flavia de Luz is an 11 year old girl who lives with her father and two older sisters. Fascinated with poisons, Flavia's life takes a turn for the "more interesting" when she finds a dying man in the cucumber patch under her bedroom window.

I listened to the unabridged audio of this book and really enjoyed it. At first, it was hard to suspend my disbelief that there could be an 11 year old like Flavia, but I got over that soon enough. Once the book was done, someone came to mind who could really be like her, one of my former violin students who always makes me smile when I think of her.

I love Flavia's character, her curiosity, independence, memory, and analytical mind. I love that when she wants to know something, she finds someone to ask or does her own experiment or goes investigating. I love that when she wants to go somewhere, she jumps on her bike and goes. I love her passion for  chemistry and that she serves her guests tea that she heats in a flask in her lab.

Definitely worth reading just to get to know Flavia. I'll be picking up the next in the series soon!

The Forever Faithful Trilogy by Karen Kingsbury

Yesterday was the perfect day to curl up with a good book, and I was very happy to receive a package in the mail from Blogging for Books with the complete Forever Faithful Trilogy. It's hefty - just over 1100 pages - and I was completely unfamiliar with the trilogy and the author when I chose this book. Once I started reading, I was sucked in.

Waiting for Morning is a story of change and forgiveness. Hannah Ryan's life is shattered and her faith destroyed when a drunk driver runs a red light, ramming the vehicle containing her husband and two teenage daughters. Only her youngest daughter survives the crash. Hannah is consumed by rage and vows revenge on the driver, ignoring her remaining daughter.

 I enjoyed discovering new scriptures from the Old Testament (mostly in Lamentations), placed at the beginning of each chapter. I was pleased to find discussion questions at the end and a note from the author, sharing her belief in Christ. I recommend this book to anyone who has wondered why bad things happen to good people and how they might cope with a truly heart-breaking situation or help a friend through a tough time.