MARISSA DAY ’14 | Academics Editor

What do you want to do before you die? No one really thinks of life in those terms. Death is something to ignore, block out of your mind until the last possible moment. It’s a scary feeling, thinking about pushing aside potential careers to follow through with those little things that you want to do in life that seem so unachievable.  

In 2006, four guys from Canada: Dave Lingwood, Ben Nemtin, Duncan Penn and Jonnie Penn set out to prove to the world dreams are worth chasing.  The guys were halfway through college and found dissatisfaction with what they had to show for it. They struggled to find a purpose, eventually creating their group known as “The Buried Life.”

Their book, “What Do You Want to Do before You Die?” (#19), another task on their list, wasn’t what I expected it to be. I thought it would chronicle how they’ve managed to cross 78 items off the list in six years, and instead was in for a surprise when there was very little of that.

In essence, they created a bucket list of 100 things to do before they die and decided to attempt to cross everything off. Inspired by the poem “The Buried Life,” written in 1852 by Matthew Arnold, they decided to do the impossible: give up on the notion of success and chase things like “Play Basketball with the President (#95), “Become a Licensed Minister (#21)” and “Host a Cooking Show (#42)”.

When I saw the list, it seemed unrealistic. They had everything: “Get in the Guinness Book of World Records (#47),” “Ask out the Girl of Your Dreams (#59)” and their claim to fame, “Make a TV Show (#43).” Anything you can imagine, they covered, both goals for themselves and helping others.  

Inside the book, there are very few pages with over 400 words on them. Instead, it takes items from other people’s bucket lists and writes them down to collectively make a bucket list from everyone they’ve met. “The Buried Life” gave people’s bucket items to artists who then drew out scenes to interprete them.

Some items people talk about are interesting like “Foiling a robbery,” and “Experience being fat for a day.” Others are heartbreaking and inspiring; “I want to know why my mom chose drugs over my brother and I.” The book is able to tie together people’s most desperate desires and let you see what others hold close to themselves.

One major component of the book and their journey is helping others accomplish things they want to do before they die. Their catch phrase is “For everything we do on our list, we help a stranger do something on theirs.” Scattered throughout the book are the stories of some people they’ve helped that show good people are out there.

I’ve been a fan of “The Buried Life” for a while, after I first saw them on MTV a couple years ago. It didn’t seem like there was potential for them, but they proved their worth. Once you sit through an episode, it hits you that what they’re doing is real and meaningful.

Naturally, being a follower of theirs, I knew that I would be getting the book. What I didn’t count on was the content. I admit I was a little disappointed that they hardly talked about the things they crossed off, but the graphic presentation was amazing, and it was inspiring seeing so many people contributing to their book.

It was interesting reading about how they started planning in a garage for what is now across America a growing phenomenon. What was supposed to be a two-week journey just for the heck of it has become a career that inspires young people across the world to chase their dreams. Not surprisingly, the book hit #1 on the New York Times’ Bestseller List.

Their quest has been unbelievable to watch and read about, and the group makes you think that anything is possible. This book gives you a chance to see what they do every day, and makes you think about what you want to do before you die. It is both inspiring and moving, challenging everyone worldwide to go after their dreams.

Grade: A-