Collecting experiences

HELLLOOOOO OWWWT THERE!  Hope you are doing very well. Oh, me?  I'm fine, thank you. Ha-ha-ha. Ok, so I read an article in the September issue of Ebony magazine in which the writer talked about "collecting experiences" rather than possessions.  Ya know?  That makes so much sense.  I actually practice this but hadn't thought of terming it "collecting experiences."  I have found that this is much more fulfilling for me than buying a bunch of things.  Ya see, I really do NOT like clutter (I mean, my space is cluttered at times BUT STILL.  I don't like clutter) and when I have a bunch of things they tend to create clutter for and to me.  I like simplicity.

For example, I had lunch with a spunky cousin of mine recently and even though the meal hit my wallet like a train wreck that I stood and watched I REALLY enjoyed the time we spent together.  And food doesn't tend to stick around like a new bag, shoes, clothing, TV, book, magazine (I got that copy of Ebony from the library...so I was able to return them their stuff), hat, hair extensions, piece of exercise equipment...ok, I think you get my drift.  I would rather spend my time and money gathering experiences with people I care about and love than on something that I really don't need.  Don't get me wrong, the aforementioned items may be something that I pick up (I will definitely need a new pair of sneakers soon the way my current pair are lookin'!) but they don't give me as much pleasure as time spent with people.

Some experience ideas I'd like to tackle:
1) Learning more about some of the elderly people I know (their lives; asking them about certain decisions they made; old desires, etc)
2) Serving a meal at a local soup kitchen
3) A cross-country trip with a north-western stop in Alaska
4) Preparing a meal with a loved one
5) Making Christmas cards with little kids to hand out at a local hospital or nursing home

What experiences would you like to collect?  Ponder that...

Til next time,
U.M.