Ask yourself:

What is that thing you want to do?  What have you been putting off doing? Do you want to start a business, watch a sunset from a Hawaiian beach, write a short story, climb a  mountain, be a foster parent, be a volunteer, learn a new trade, try a new hobby, reach out to a long lost friend or love?   The list of possibilities is endless.  Most of us probably have a mental list or maybe it’s in a notebook, safely hidden in a desk drawer.

Anna Jones wrote and self-published her memoir, Ocho Ocho in 2012 when she was 77 years old.  For years, the parts of her story were in her head but life was busy and the time to devote to writing was scarce.  Her kids were on “her case” to do it, frequently giving her hints and suggestions.

In 2011, Jones learned of a memoirs workshop being held at the local senior center in Helena and didn’t want the opportunity to pass her by.  She signed up and began the journey of piecing together her story.  With a mentor’s guiding hand, she completed her manuscript before traveling with her husband, John to see family in California.  On that trip, she had a stroke which left her legally blind.  Calling it God’s providence, she was grateful she was able to write the book before the stroke.

The title of her memoir, Ocho Ocho, represents the Spanish word for eight, for her eight grandchildren.  She explained that more than half of her eight grandchildren are “borrowed” from her husband, John “but she has no intention of giving them back”.  The other half of the title comes from the name of one of her favorite games during her childhood years in Manila – Ocho Ocho.  Chapters in her book are written as letters to each of her grandchildren.

Jones shares her early memories of her life in China and the Philippines during World War II.  Her parents were fraternal workers with the Church of Christ in China.  Her story recounts the occupation of her home in China by the Japanese Army and the capture of the Philippine Islands.  She also shares her experience of life in a Japanese controlled Manila, in an internment camp south of the city and a dramatic rescue.

Jones wrote her story as she remembered it and the point was to share her childhood experiences and how very different they were from her children and grandchildren.  Her memoir is a legacy that provides a glimpse into her interesting and complicated life.

Anna Jones did it.  She completed the thing she’d thought about doing for most of her life.  The thing she did for herself and her family is a source of satisfaction for her and a treasure for her family.

We procrastinate and tell ourselves we’ll have the time, energy or inclination eventually.   Our lists are important to us because they’re our dreams, our daydreams unfulfilled.  It’s a cliché to say that time flies but yet we all know it’s true.  You turn around or look up and another year is gone and with it the opportunity to check something off your list.  So, dust off the list and select something and get after it!