We only have one life. Yet, for some reason, we act like we’re going to live forever.
One of the greatest ironies of our lives is perhaps the fact that we choose to stay busy, but at the same time complain that we don’t have enough time for focusing on the things we love doing and the people we enjoy hanging out with.
We put things off until tomorrow as if we have all the time in the world to make our dreams happen.
We fail to make time to finish the book we promised ourselves we would.
We forget about the vacation we promised ourselves and our family for a whole year.
We avoid learning that new skill we always wanted to learn because we are too lazy to get out of our comfort zone.
And eventually, we stop living life.
I mean, we are still pretty alive and well, but we go through life following a fixated routine. We get so caught up in the patterns that we create for ourselves that we find it extremely difficult to eventually get out of it. We take life for granted, thinking that we have all the time in the world to do everything we’ve always wanted…
But pretty soon, life faces us with the uncomfortable truth.
We lose someone important and we get reminded of the fragility of life. We realize that there are no guarantees. No promises that the joy, health, and happiness we enjoy today will be right there for us in the morning.
The truth is, facing the fragility of life is devastating. But at the same time, it is the most empowering and eye-opening experience. Why? Because it helps us see the bigger picture. It helps us change our perspective. And eventually, by doing that, it motivates us to make the most of our days.
It took me the loss of my best friend and a devastating end to a relationship to realize that life is indeed very short. I admit I was blind before. But now I see. I see very clearly.
Life is short. Time is fleeting. Let’s stop wasting it and instead…
1. Focus on the present moment. We may have today, but that doesn’t guarantee us that we’ll have tomorrow. Tomorrow may never come for some of us. That is why the only thing we must do is to live now. At this exact moment.
2. Be grateful for the way things are. Striving for new goals is absolutely admirable and inspiring. The problems arise when we get so caught up in our achievements that we forget about everything else we have in life. In other words, when we start to take life for granted. Stop for a second and look around you. You have many reasons to be grateful. Don’t overlook the precious gifts that you’ve been given.
3. Learn to let go of things that eat you up. Everything that makes you hurt inside. Everything that destroys your life. Everything that takes away your happiness. Everything that makes you doubt yourself. Let that go. In the end, the only thing that truly matters in life is finding happiness. Whatever happiness means to you.
4. Make time for what matters the most. Life is fleeting. Time is slowly fading away. We have to realize that we are not immortal after all. We are living, human beings who have a limited time on Earth, and it is up to us to make the most of our days. If we don’t make time for our loved ones, we will ultimately lose the people that we care about. If we don’t prioritize our passions, one day we will regret our actions. If we don’t stop and take care of ourselves, no one else will. Everything in life comes with a price. The sooner you realize that the better off you’ll be.
We all have a temporary place in this world. Let’s make our days count!
