Ever since I saw the “I Love Lucy” episode where Lucille Ball joined a group of women stomping grapes I’ve had a secret desire to do the same. Something about getting to mash food with my bare feet appealed to my inner child.
I got to fulfill that childhood fantasy last Saturday when my husband and I participated in a “Grape Stomping” contest at a local winery during their “Harvest Festival” celebration. Four teams gathered atop a flatbed wagon and wooden tubs were filled with about twenty pounds of grapes. One person of the team (me!) stepped into the tub while the other person (my husband) held a plastic pitcher below the tub’s spout. We had three minutes to stomp away at the slippery fruit and try to get as much juice into the pitchers as we could. I’m proud to inform you all that WE WON!!! I pulvarized those purple balls and my husband kept the spigot clean so that all our juice poured out!
To answer some frequently asked questions after the event-no the grapes weren’t cold, the stems didn’t hurt my feet and my toes weren’t permanently colored purple.
Of course, I have much bigger goals to accomplish on my true “Bucket List” before the Lord brings me home-visit Israel and Egypt, get a novel published, hike a mountain (a small one!) But stomping grapes really had been something I’d always wanted to experience and I had a blast doing it.
So what little thing have you always wanted to do but never had the chance? Learn to juggle or tap dance? Take a class in basket weaving? Bake a four tiered chocolate layer cake? Jot me a line and let me know. And then maybe look for the opportunity to accomplish that goal. It sure is a lot of fun! Now if I can just figure out how to use the experience in one of my stories…
I want to go hot air ballooning! 😀
You go for it girl!
My biggest “bucket list” item is to become a spiritual director. Last week I started the two-year process with a week’s residency at Sacred Heart Monastery in Yankton, SD. My husband’s bucket list item for me is to learn to ride a motorcycle. Maybe I’ll give that to him for our anniversary.
Congrats on starting the process toward your goal to become a spiritual director. What exactly is that?
And I thought you already knew how to ride a motorcycle! One of my little goals is to actually go for a ride on one, I’ve never been on a bike before! With your permission, I’d like to ask Frank to take me for a spin one of these days!
I’d love to have a cottage with a big screened-in porch either on a hilltop or by the water. I’m not sure where — maybe Maine or the Seattle area.
A spiritual director is someone who walks with another person on their spiritual journey. They help the other person notice where God is working in their lives, and helps them develop their relationship with God. Usually you meet with a spiritual director for an hour once a month, but as a pastor, I also do spiritual direction in everything I do — preaching, teaching, pastoral care.
I know how to ride on the back of a motorcycle, but I need to learn to how ride one myself. You don’t need my permission to ask Frank. I’m sure he would be delighted to take you on a ride!
Sherry! A cottage like that is on my big “to-do” list! The biggest drawback about living in Nebraska is the lack of water and mountains. sigh…
While I don’t have a clearly defined ‘bucket list’ I do try to seize the opportunity to do memorable things. We all need some sort of break in the routine, even though we all need the routine and stability as much.
That’s kind of been my motto this year. Just taking a few more risks. Not necessarily life threatening risks, just trying to make myself more open to people and vulnerable.