It’s getting to be that time of year again; the sun is shining, the flowers blooming and the first snows of spring are upon us.
I’ve come out of my little hole to make some end of the year comments. You know, that sort of taking stock of where we’ve been.
I find myself at the end of the year, older, not too much wiser, and preparing to face the world.
I actually have to consider what I’m going to do when I grow up.
Maybe that’s what’s bothering me. I’m finally admitting to having to grow up. It’s something we all go through.
Most of us know it’s all over the minute we realize it’s happening. As long as we are children, life seems to be something that will never run out or expire. For children, time has little meaning.
For the rest of us it is a blessed commodity in short supply.
We feel the necessity to make use of every second, for fear it is either our last, or fear that there are so many things to do, knowing time is a tool for spreading apart the objectives we need to complete.
As finals approach, I can’t help but wonder what would happen if we all dared to take 30 minutes out of our day to do nothing at all. Not that unconscious state of wasted time (sleep), or the time we place between projects, and not a project unto itself. Just a half an hour spent doing nothing.
Life is very much like a candle in this respect.The faster you run with one, the sooner it will expire. I don’t want to look back in 20 years at everything I never took the opportunity to appreciate.
When was the last time you looked at a sunset? When was the last time you watched the sunset in the pink sky? How many times did you see either of these when you weren’t behind the wheel of your car?
How many times have you seen flowers that weren’t carried by a guy in a van?
How many times have you gone out in the woods when you weren’t chasing your dog or camping in an RV park?
How many times have you stopped to think about your world?
I once read a quote that said, “If this was your last day on earth, who would you talk to, what would you say, and why are you waiting?”
Be careful of the things you ignore and take for granted. Friends, family, freedom and love are all things we take as givens in our life.
Just remember that the one thing you were going to say tomorrow; that one little thing you were going to do when you have time; that vacation you’ll take when you have a little more in the bank; or that time you spend with your friend, husband, wife, child or significant other just as soon as you get a chance.
Well, what if you never do those things? What if we run out of time?
This applies to all aspects of life.
Every time you say, well, I’ll ask her out tomorrow or I’ll call my (whomever) tomorrow or I’ll try for that raise next time, think about how there may not be tomorrow.
Life gives out no extensions, a few second chances and many opportunities. So, whatever you do, don’t wait.
Time is precious, but don’t hoard it. It is limited, but don’t waste it.
Share it with the people you care about, so that when you grow up the time left will not include any regrets.

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