Carpe Diem. Seize the day. Live today like it’s your last.
Almost all of us have heard of at least one of these sayings that tell us that remind us of the possibility that we may not live to see another day. So then why is it that most of us, despite being bombarded with inspiring sayings like such, do not live each day like it’s our last? I’m certainly guilty of it.
Ric Elias during his TED talk talks about his near-death experience. The plane he was on crash-landed in Hudson River in New York and he survived. As he prepared himself for what seemed to be his inevitable death, he realized the following:
- He had put off many things that he should have done
- He let his ego get in the way of his relationships with his loved ones
- He wants to be a great parent
While listening to his talk, it hit me that the reason why many of us procrastinate or wait a day, a week, a month or even a year to call a friend or a relative that we haven’t seen in a while or to say a simple apology to someone we had an argument with is because we believe there will always be another day. “I can sleep on it and the sun will rise again tomorrow. Tomorrow will be another day and I’ll do it then,” tends to be our attitude. Whether we admit it or not, I think many of us believe we are invincible. We are not going to get hit by a bus tomorrow…there will always be tomorrow…
But what if there isn’t…? What if today IS our last…? What would your biggest regret be? What would you wish that you had done? Is it going to take a near death experience like Ric to realize that we are, in fact, not invincible? What if we don’t get a second chance like Ric did? So, why not just simply live like it is our last day?
It definitely is easier said than done, however. We fall into the cycle of life and become complacent. We get busy and tired and forget about the little things that matter. But if we woke up every morning and remembered that it was a blessing to live another day – and not ‘ugh…another day of work or school’ – and did one thing each day – not ten, not five, just one but one every day – that really mattered to us…then I think we may, soon enough, be living like it’s our last.
and now I have to go call my mom and tell her I love her 🙂
Aw Mina this was such a cute post! I can totally identify during the final days of my undergraduate degree…it won’t be long now until the days of student procrastination are over! In all honesty, I am looking forward to a new environment in which marks/grades/tests are no longer the largest motivation to complete work or put effort into a project. I have found that during the last four years, it has been a more a matter of a “balancing act” than procrastination (contrary to what many profs may believe!) Many of us take a full course load, so “balancing” when we choose to complete tasks/schedule meetings/have spare time is essential to keeping sane! From here on in though, I am excited to (hopefully) begin a career where the work and people themselves are a good enough reason to get things done everyday!