Part two of my Glow Girl Summer Book Club. If you are looking for a free printable with book club questions you can use with your favorite book, click here.

And for ALL things reading, check out this full compilation.

Ever had a book just stand out on the shelf? Wandering through the PHX airport bookstore I saw Love, Lists and Fancy Ships by Sarah Grunder Ruiz when I was flying home from trip for work. The cover just caught my eye because it was all about lists. And you know I love a good list!  (blog)  So to help not add to my overflowing bookshelf, I put it on hold at my library and dove into it.

It is a lighthearted read in parts, diving into behind the scenes of life on a private charter yacht but there really is a lot more to the story.  The main character Jo is trying to figure out her way in life and navigate some recent grief.  Using her 30 x 30 bucket list, she hopes it will give her some direction and what she thinks she needs to experience by this milestone birthday.

But this actually turns out to be so much more, especially once her summer plans go awry.  Having her nieces turn up unexpectedly required Jo to get a lot more creative in pulling them off and her nieces helped make checking off the items possible, with a bit of reframing and imagination.

Depth of Story

The loss of her nephew is an undercurrent in the story, until it’s finally brought out into the open.  Throughout the story, Jo and her nieces bury their feelings about the loss they each feel in an attempt of self-preservation and in name of protecting everyone else from their own feelings.  It provides an opportunity to reflect in our own lives of times we’ve processed grief (or not) and how each of us does it differently.  It adds a depth to the story mixed in with the fun antics on the yacht and the cast of quirky characters, including Nina and Alex. 

Love, Lists and Fancy Ships offers the chance to reflect on what would Jo’s life look like if things had gone the way it was “supposed” to go.  We’ve all had experiences that something throws a wrench in our plans, and the feelings that come with it.  This is another form of grief that doesn’t get talked about.  Acknowledging our feelings around missed experiences and learning how to process our frustration and disappointment allows us to then process and release those feelings. 

Reflection Prompt:

How can you reframe an experience where something didn’t go as planned?  Play out in your mind a story where the mishap actually led to a better outcome.  What lesson can you gain from the experience?  How can you acknowledge and release any feelings that are lingering from the experience?

What lists reveal

The premise of Jo completing her bucket list was more meaningful because the way it came together.  It started out as more of a list of what Jo thought she needed to do before she crossed into her 30’s. But items on her list really went so much deeper than they appeared on the surface.

Reflection Prompt:

What are some of the things you feel you ought to be doing or have accomplished?  Take a look at them and go a little deeper.  What are they really trying to show you or draw out of you?

Creativity and Accomplishing Goals

Getting creative in how Jo satisfied her bucket list created a much bigger impact than following a prescribed way or the way she thought it was and being open to these new interpretations that her nieces came up with and realizing it can still count.   Just because she wrote down that she would sleep in a castle, didn’t mean it had to be a medieval European castle.   

With creativity, she did sleep in a castle, it just wasn't maybe what she had envisioned.  And in the end, it turned out to be so much better.  She was surrounded by people she loved and has a lot of shared, meaningful memories from that versus going off to Europe.  The one sounds more fanciful and amazing, but maybe wouldn't have fulfilled her life story or given her a meaningful experience in the way that this turned out.

Reflection Prompt:

What is an experience or expectation that didn’t turn out the way that you had planned?  Take a moment to reframe it and see how those moments can better serve you by noticing how much growth they're showing you.  

Power of Bucket Lists

And maybe that's the real lesson in pulling together one of these bucket lists. You create it based on what you think you need. But it actually has so much more to show you because there is an element of truth to them. There is something that your inner knowing is trying to draw out of you to pull you toward that maybe you don't know the whole story.

Maybe you haven't connected the dots (blog) in the way that your inner knowing knows is meant for you. So just like Jo when she has her list, allow yourself to feel that you can define success however you choose, and it's not a cop out, especially if it provides a meaningful experience or lesson for you.  

Maybe it's not the bucket list item itself, but the experience it puts you in that draws you to the next step. And emboldens your courage or gives you an emotional high or just lets you let loose and connect with your true self.

Those are the things that could really be at the heart of those bucket list items.  Disguised just enough to help you take that that next right step without your mind stepping in to hold you back.   

Your Turn

So, I dare you to make the list.  Give your inner self permission to share its desires.  Let it come from your heart and your spirit.  Write out the impulsive blurts.  Don’t censor yourself.  If it’s coming from your heart and soul, then it is imperative that you explore it. 

Then I want you to have fun with it.  Use creativity to satisfy each item.  Remember that it's about the journey of getting through it, not just the mission of checking everything off.

It does help to have some time sensitivity to it, to inspire action, but it doesn't mean that if you failed if you don’t hit the timing you set.  Use it as an opportunity to reflect and decide if there was something holding you back from pursuing it. 

• Was this a head driven item instead of heart and spirit inspired?

• What fear was creeping in?

• Does it need a more creative solution?

Answer these for yourself and revise the item if needed.  Take it off the list.  Replace it.  Just like Jo, the things on your bucket list are your goals.  Your dreams. Your life.  And so you get to decide what makes the list and counts. 

Let Me Know

Which of Jo’s bucket list things would you do and what would you add? I definitely could stand to tackle the decluttering one and a definite no on the tattoo.

I have a personal growth bucket list for summer (blog) and I invite you to download it and see if that gives you some inspiration to get started. It includes some ideas for inspiration and a blank template for you to fill out your own.

To help you go a little deeper on your own personal growth journey and explore more in this book, I’ve created a list of additional reflection questions that can be used as journal prompts or with your book club.  Download your printable guide here.

This is the 2nd in the summer beach read book series, each with their own reader reflection guide.  Check out One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle and the whole list here —> Glow Girl Summer Reading List

If you loved Love, Lists and Fancy Ships, Sarah’s newest book Luck and Last Resorts comes out 8/9/22

*post contains affiliate links to support independent bookstores and my love of reading, at no additional cost to you.

Stephanie Rose is a mom, wife, business owner and a forever student in finding ways to know herself better. She acts as guide for your own journey, sharing insights, tools and practices to help you remember your magic and live a life that lights you up. Sign up for her newsletter and check out her free resources.

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