I recently read an article by one of my favorite musicians about 10 things he couldn’t live without. This instantly piqued my curiosity and I began contemplating “what are 10 things I wouldn’t want to live without?!” That question proved to be much harder than I thought to answer. After a few days of gathering things that I feel are most important to making my life fulfilling, here is what I’ve decided:
1. Water
Metaphorically, I just can’t live without it. As soon as I dive into the water, I feel at home. There is an indescribable sort of peace that lies underwater. (Described in more detail here). Without the feeling of solidarity, the muteness, and the connection with the deep roots of our evolutionary history, I couldn’t be whole!
2. Goggles
And of course, I couldn’t appreciate the underwater world nearly as much without the ability to see it all clearly with some goggles.
3. My Passport
There are so many places in this world that I need to see. I aspire to travel far and wide, experience different cultures, religions, and culinaries. I could never be satisfied without the opportunity to trek and explore the world outside of the United States. Ecuador, Galapagos, and Spain – here I come!
4. My Friends
This one is definitely a given. I have the absolutely GREATEST people in my life to call my friends. The word “friends” may even be seriously downplaying us all – we are a family. I wouldn’t have any of the greatest memories that I treasure so highly if it weren’t for my chaotic, impulsive, and rock star friends. They make me happy and whole, and boy would my life be dreary if I didn’t have the entertainment, inspiration, and life-long connections with these people.
5. Music
I couldn’t even try to live without the gift of music. Music of all genres fuel my creative process, trigger adrenaline for workouts, ease my mind while relaxing, and focus my attention while studying. It is pretty incredible how one specific thing can trigger so many different emotions: compassion, motivation, relaxation, hyperactivity, and the desire to bust out in some terrible dancing.
6. Low tide
There is something oddly comforting to me about the smell of low tide. I’m not talking about the salty, cool, ocean breeze. I’m talking the warm air as it hits the smell of fish and seaweed. I have no idea why, but to me it is one of the greatest, most calming smells in the world. Probably similar to how people feel about the smell of baking bread, campfire, or rain. I don’t know anyone that would agree with me about low tide so far. If they made a candle called “Low Tide” that actually smelt like a real low tide, I doubt anyone would buy it. But when I lived in Garibaldi, OR I would inhale this low tide smell daily, and it never got old.
7. Understanding
I simply wouldn’t be me without my constant desire for understanding. Even though when school is in session I might get minimal sleep, look like a monster, and practically live on campus – I wouldn’t want to live any other way. At least for now. When my thirst for knowledge and understanding is quenched, I feel alive, content, and excited. Does any of this knowledge and understanding really serve any use to anyone? Who knows. But it makes me happy.
8. Books
The previous entry wouldn’t even be possible without the window into the minds of geniuses, scholars, doctors, philosophers, and simple story tellers that books provide. Books grant me with the ability to work through a difficult emotion, learn a new language, understand life, mentally visit places I’ve never seen, and also satisfy that tiny, prepubescent girl inside of me that loves vampires.
9. My Kitchen
I love to cook! If I couldn’t cook for myself I would probably be a seriously unhealthy and depressed person. The gift of creating, preparing, and cooking my own meals is not only one of my favorite activities, it is an absolute necessity for a healthy life, and also marks a big milestone in the primitive human’s past. Unfortunately, the world we have created now is packed full of already prepared meals loaded with ingredients that we can’t pronounce nor recognize anywhere in nature. I wouldn’t want to live without the luxury of cooking in my kitchen.
10. ?
Finally, I couldn’t live without the appreciation to whom or what is behind all of these things that increase and sustain my quality of life.
**I predict that over the years this list will change. It will be amusing looking back at this 10 years from now and seeing how my priorities and my idea of happiness have adapted. But for now, these are things that I cherish and desire. So, friends: What are 10 things that you wouldn’t want to live without?!**
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LifeOfSci 