Live Like You Were Dying
Posted on July 17, 2009 - Filed Under Living Fully |
It is important to always live like you were dying. Because you know what? You are.
I was looking at photos and reading about Carolyn Bessette Kennedy and JFK Jr. tonight. Some of the images were just months before their tragic deaths. It is eery to think when the pictures were taken they had no idea their lives would soon be over. I say this not to be morbid, but rather to emphasize the need to live every day as though it could be your last.
I once read about a culture who thinks about death everyday. Again, this for them is an effort to live their lives more fully. Contemplating death should not be so much about fear as it should be a reminder to us. We do not have all the time in the world to do what we want. The time is now.
I am guilty of putting off life. I think “when this happens, then I will feel free to do what I really want” — this results in a constant stream of new things I end up waiting to have happen. I am consciously working on being fully present now, even as I aspire to achieve new things and reach new goals. Wishing time away (can’t wait until I finish college, the baby’s out of diapers, I retire, etc.) is a very dangerous habit.
When you live like you were dying, it creates a sense of urgency to do what you really want. Suddenly all of the ’shoulds’ drop away. You don’t care about that stuff anymore. You figure out really quick what is important in life.
You don’t want to look back and wish you had been more present. You do not want to have regrets about having been distracted from your real life. Play with your kids now. Kiss your spouse now. Smell the flowers NOW.
One day there will be a picture of you a few months before you are gone. Chances are you will have no idea the end is near. Do not allow this notion to make you want to hunker down and wait for fate to take its course. Use it to light a fire under you. Does it really matter if you get to watch your recorded episode of CSI? Isn’t there anything else that might really excite you?
You need to be able to lie in bed at night and think, “Today was really good. My life is good. If I die tomorrow, I will feel as though I have really lived.” Make a list of things to do before you die, and get started doing those things. Think of some things you enjoy so much, you would like to do them everyday. Start incorporating these things into your daily routine.
Time is of the essence here. Wake up from your trance of existing and start to live like you were dying.
Carpe Diem. Carpe la Joie de Vivre.
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