I’ve been thinking about leaps. 

Having grown up with a parent who kept a bucket list long before it was the trendy thing to do (and certainly long before Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman popularized it in the 2006 film by Rob Reiner), it never occurred to me that listing out what you wanted and needed to do before you died was an odd thing.  My mom called it (and still calls it, actually) her list of, “things to do before I die.”  I like that it’s now becoming more common; it’s good to have an end goal.

I was, coincidentally, watching The Bachelor (I know, I know…) when I was inspired by a concept that they brought up:
 
A leap list.  

While a Bucket List is supposed to be a list of things that happen before you, “kick the bucket,” a “Leap List” is a list of things before you have a major life change:  a big birthday, having children, or graduating from school.  It’s all the things you want to do before you make a big leap. 

I like it.
 
I recently came to the realization that it’s been four years since I finished university.  That means (and now you’re doing the math) that I have officially been out of school for as long as I was in it.
 
So I figure that, at 26, turning 30 is as “leap” worthy as any other arbitrarily chosen milestone. Particularly since it doesn’t look like I’m getting married or having children any time soon.  

I haven’t decided on a complete list of leap-worth things (though something like running a half marathon or seeing the bison may be on it), but I actually completed one just yesterday.  

Friends, I am blonde.
 
Like, legitimately, bleachy bleachy blonde. 

If you know me (even a little) you’ll know that it’s a big deal.  Because, let’s face it, I’m a brunette kind of gal.  I read lots of books.  I avoid direct sunlight if possible.  My favorite season is the fall.  I listen to classical music without being forced.  I’m not exactly a stereotypical blonde.
 
But for years I’ve always wondered what it would be  like to have blonde hair (and, truth be told, I was a very  blonde baby), so I figured, what the heck.  And now my first leap list item (ok, it’s still a work in progress and  getting the color just right will take a few more visits to the salon) can be officially crossed off.  Neat. 

Wondering is great.  But wondering “what if” is the worst kind of wonder out there.  It seems to me that leaping - literally, proverbially, or otherwise, is easier when you’ve taken baby steps to get there.  We can’t stop forward  progression; change is constant, but we can prepare ourselves for the big moments, so that when we arrive at the precipice, we have the muscle to boldly, proudly, happily take the leap.