You only have one life

Would you do anything differently if you knew you only had a year to live?

The Grim Reaper made 2016 annus horribilis and harvested indiscriminately, taking actors, comedians, musicians, writers and politicians and prompting a communal outpouring of grief.

Back to the question in the opening line. I guarantee priorities will come sharply into focus if you give serious thought to that question.

There exists within each of us a longing to leave a legacy, some proof that we were here. We need to know that our lives were important, that somehow our being here mattered.

Otherwise our lives are in danger of becoming an utter waste. We will become like a candle in the wind. We will achieve things, no doubt, and we will have things, but many years from now, in the dim light of our distant memories, we will remember the dreams we ignored and abandoned. Regret over things done can be eased over time. Regret over things left unsaid and undone is inconsolable.

I have noticed that everyone has dreams. I have noticed that some people achieve their dreams, and for others they seem always out of reach. Why is this? Does God have favorites? I don't think so. The reason is some people dream and wait for their dreams to come true. They look at others, whom they consider lucky and they think, I hope that happens to me one day! Other people go out, armed with their dreams, chasing their rainbow, living life passionately, making their dreams come true.

It is too easy to always want more from life, and that's fine to a degree, since expanding who we are is a part of dreaming nd growing. But as we will never have everything we want and will always be growing, appreciating what we already have along the way is very important.

But occasionally, through the darkest times, I struggled to come up with anything to be grateful for. Emotional exhaustion wears me out at times to such a point that even finding blessings was an effort.

And while I was striving for my financial and career goals, I forgot to enjoy myself along the way. It was all about the result of finding what I was looking for. This is something I had seen often, as they too are familiar words from other friends. While working towards goals, the present moment is too often neglected along the way. Our happiness was based on the end result, and was not enjoyed during the process of getting there.

We have one life and it is short. Far too short to lose ourselves in the day-to-day drudgery and the hustle and bustle. Time is fast. There is no replay, no rewind.

With the new year comes new strength and new thoughts. I wake up saying, "I'm alive, a miracle." And so I keep on pushing. I will dedicate myself to the things that deserve my dedication.