Time

“Every day think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it.” – Dalai Lama.

“Your life is a firefly blink in a night.” – Eric Jorgenson.

Time is a constant. It is constantly being depleted from your life.

Every second, our hourglass becomes a little less filled. You can’t flip it over for a re-do; you can’t buy another one. The time you have is precious, and the time that has passed can never be replaced. It’s a little morbid to think like that, but that is precisely how I see it. We can never get yesterday back, and tomorrow is not promised. Act now, chase your dream, and see your life blossom before your eyes. 

Table of Contents 

• Living in harmony 
  • Present 
  • Past 
  • Future 
• Goals & Dreams 
  • Plan/Vision Map
  • Short-term/Long-term 
  • Intentional 
• Seasons 
  • People
  • Values 
  • Life  
• S.W.F.
  • Subconscious
  • Wisdom 
  • Focus 

“Life’s too short to wake up with regrets. So, love the people who treat you right. Forgive the ones who don’t and believe that everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said it’d be easy. They just promised it would be worth it.” – Dr. Seuss.

Time is going to pass you by no matter what. Each day the sun will rise and set, regardless of what you are doing or not doing. Take chances, take risks, face fears, and chase goals and dreams. Ask the person out, take the job, move states, travel alone, meet new people, buy the plane ticket, and do all the things that scare you because they are worth it. Life is but a beautiful ride, you’re either on it, living it, or it’s passing you. Punch the ticket, and get on the train. Live and live now.  

If I am not growing, learning, creating, or changing weekly, if not daily, I am wasting time, therefore, wasting my life. This is how I think and feel every day, I want more out of this life, and I know if I can dream it, I can achieve it. I say this a lot, and I say it to myself often, “you only get one shot, one opportunity, in this body on this planet; make it a good one.” Never mind the afterlife or reincarnation for now. Im just talking about the present. 

LIVING IN HARMONY

Present 

Being present in the moment can be extremely difficult, especially when life throws wrenches into your gears and kicks you simultaneously. Our minds race like an F1 car in Monaco. Anxiety is the race fuel, depression our tires, and your brain the brakes. Learning to calm the mind to be present is a rare gift but one we must challenge ourselves to do. Life is a lot more beautiful when you are present. To be fully present is to have abundant joy for you and all those around you. You’ll realize how many gifts and abundance there are around us when being present. 

Past 

I’m sure you have heard this before “you can’t change the past,” but you can throw your hands up, say F*** it, and move forward. Trying to change things you have no power or influence over is a lost battle. We do not dwell on lost actions! We face our new challenges by learning lessons from the past so we can conquer our future. The past is not who you are; the end is who you are. You can never be fully present and enjoy life if you constantly think about history; what’s done is done. Forgive, learn, and grow into the new version you wish to be.  

Memories are burdens from the past, preventing us from living in the present.  

Future 

It’s been said that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. There is some truth to that. Our closest friends significantly impact how we treat others, treat ourselves, handle situations, and go about life. They can and do influence our lives a lot more than we know. I believe your daily habits will significantly impact your future more than your closest five friends, which could very much influence your daily habits. If you have good daily habits and those closest to you don’t, you could find yourself naturally moving away from them, and that’s ok. (see seasons below for more) However, you are in control of the choices you make daily. Are they healthy and wise choices? Your future will be shaped much by the choices and habits you have today. If you need a changeup, do it; the sooner, the better. 

“If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.” ― Lao Tzu.

GOALS and DREAMS

Plan/Vision Map 

I talked about creating a vision map in my last blog, purpose. If you want to utilize your time and squeeze every ounce of life out of every day, then having a detailed plan is vital to success. Knowing where you are going and how you are getting there is a critical part of utilizing time wisely and ensuring you are accomplishing your goals and dreams. Over the years, I have habitually kept four to seven pokers in the fire. I like to stay busy but only get a little done without specific allotted times and a plan. Giving myself specific times for specific work is critical to ensure I get a decent amount done and finish my mini-goals. 

We make specific plans for investing/day trading; we have a plan of action at work, a plan in the gym, and even a plan on vacation about not making a plan. Micro and macro plans are part of our lives; why would you not make a plan for your life? About anything and everything you want from life? 

Short-term/Long-term 

Short-term goals can help us accomplish our long-term goals. If you don’t set specific short-term goals, don’t be surprised when your long-term plan doesn’t come to fruition. This past summer, 2022, I hiked the CDT (see other blogs). When you hike 12 -16 hours a day, the days can feel like forever. A mile feels like twelve. The terrain can be challenging, the weather can get nasty, and your motivation can diminish. Regardless of the weather, I hiked seven miles that day or 37, that time will pass, and the day will end. Whatever thoughts I was struggling with, how much pain my feet were in, how hot, cold, and windy, it all concluded. Your goals and dreams are the same. If you don’t start now, no matter how long you think it will take to accomplish, it will take forever if you don’t put a plan into action and begin. That time will pass you by. 

Intentional. Done on purpose; deliberate.

 “Never regret a day in your life, good days give happiness, bad days give experience, worst days give lessons, and the best days give memories.” – unknown.

Be Intentional – time, words, thoughts, actions. Keep your word. Stand firm on your values, morals, and beliefs.  

Feel free to start over. Being intentional means doing a life inventory from time to time and tossing anything that no longer aligns with your values and beliefs. If you still have breath in your lungs, it’s a chance to rebuild what you want. A new city, a job, friends, coffee shops, bars, a gym, and anything else you wish new in your life. This includes you! You cannot change every external factor in your life and expect your future life to be perfect. It would be best if you changed the inside. If you were pressed in a wine press, what would squeeze out? Fine wine or sewer water? 

SEASONS 

The seasons in our lives change as often as spring and summer. It’s beautiful but can also be sad. Being self-aware and accepting of these changes can make them more tolerable. 

Our careers change, sometimes by choice, other times not. It’s a new opportunity to learn new skills, meet new people, and possibly finally give you the push you need to start your own business or move for a dream job. With a change in career, a change in a city might follow. Moving and exploring new cities and countries is a blessing! My growth and outlook on life have changed dramatically due to my traveling, and so has the art on my leg.

“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

You’ll find yourself in great pain and frustration if you are unaware of these seasons changing or trying to fight them. Fighting seasons is not a battle you can win. As time moves forward into the future, these seasons will too. Change is good, evolving is good, and don’t fight the wave when you can ride it. 

A great way to gain wisdom, grow, and ensure you don’t waste your precious future time is by taking a step back and looking at the suffering you have had in your life. Write them down. “The last time a relationship ended (partner or friend), business failure, fired from a job, health issue, what happened? How can you grow and learn from these life events to ensure they don’t happen again? Learn and move forward, don’t dwell in suffering land for long it will be too much for the soul to bear. 

The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.  – Jack London

People

The people in our life are going to change often. They will often parallel our seasons. Moving cities, change in career, change in romantic relationships, all of these changes will also bring new people into our lives. Some are wonderful people and touch our hearts in extraordinary ways, while others are toxic and poison to our hearts and souls. It is imperative to understand the difference between the two people and learn to cut the toxic ones out. How do I know if I have toxic people in my life? 

Friends come and go, most serve us for a period of time and then move on like a leaf floating in the wind. They were great for a brief moment in life, but as with all things in life, things change. Treasure those friendships, look back and be blessed you had some great ones. Keep in touch with those who truly mean something special to you, and let the others go.

Values 

If you grew up with a robust belief system, you probably have kept most of your core values throughout life. If you did not, your values have probably changed often due to life’s events and lessons learned, which is fine as long as you grow and evolve positively. Wisdom comes with time, lessons, and the willingness to learn. 

Our values and morals from eighteen years old should differ from twenty-five to thirty to thirty-five. They should be changing and evolving as you do. That is called growth, my friends; if you are not growing, you are dying. You can adapt and overcome. 

Life 

What makes life so precious and beautiful is that one day time will run out. We must live and live for today. Time is ever slipping away. You can’t gift it; you can’t replace it. We can cherish it, we can respect it, and we can spend it wisely. Take responsibility for your life, your attitudes, your values, and how you spend your time. The way you spend your time is who you are. Throughout the week and weekend, what are you doing the most? Reading, working out, sleeping, drinking at the bar, etc., are all indicators of the season of life you are in and can give you some great insight into who you are becoming. As I mentioned above, these seasons change often. If you dislike the one you are in, make some new changes and put yourself in a new season. Start where you are and change the ending. A shitty break is an opportunity to reassess, reboot, and come back stronger and wiser.

S.W.F.

Subconscious

You are the captain of your soul. You have the capacity to choose. Choose life! Choose health! Choose happiness!

Don’t make promises to yourself that you don’t intend to keep. If you lie to yourself, your subconscious does not know the difference. To change your life, you have to establish a new major premise in your thinking. Once the subconscious mind accepts an idea, it begins to execute it.

Your subconscious is a giant memory bank. All of the memories, emotions, and beliefs about everything you’ve ever experienced get stored in the subconscious. Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. You are planting seeds of thought in your subconscious mind all day long. As you sow in your subconscious mind, so shall you reap in your body and environment. The unconscious data in your head influence 90 to 95% of your behavior.

Wisdom 

Wisdom is knowledge through experience; experience comes from living life, also known as growing older. As we grow older and experience more life, that is, relationships, pain, death, love, etc., every single one of those events can be a learning lesson and a lesson to gain more wisdom. The wisdom we learn can be a great indicator of how our future will turn out. 

Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another. -Ernest Hemingway

Focus 

Focus on what is necessary and what you can change. Focus only on what is in your immediate control and power. Long term, if you want a different result, you have to start now. In the meantime, if you want a different result, you must start now.

Death 

In the end, death is the only thing that gives us perspective on the value of our life. On your death bed, will you have a list of regrets, or will you be ready to move onto the afterlife and say; I’m good, I’m ready; it was a hell of a ride; thank you all, see you on the flip. 

“When it’s time to die, let us not discover that we have never lived.” – Henry David Thoreau.

“Ultimately, death is the only thing that gives us perspective on the value of our life. Because it’s only by imagining your non-existence that you can get a sense of what is most important about your existence.” -Mark Manson

Reflection

What does time now mean to you? What is important in this life?

• Time is a precious gift that you can never get back.
• Live a full and meaningful life according to you.

Top five regrets of the dying.

1.    I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

2.    I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.

3.    I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

4.    I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

5.    I wish that I had let myself be happier.

An additional ten regrets of the dying:

• I wish I had worked less.
• I wish I had worried less.
• I wish I had forgiven more.
• I wish I had faced my fears.
• I wish I had lived my own life.
• I wish I had been more honest.
• I wish I had stood up for myself.
• I wish I had lived up to my full potential.
• I wish I had spent more time with the people I love.
• I wish I had cared less about what other people think.

As always, thanks for reading and for your support and feedback. My goal for any of my blogs is to inspire, help heal, help grow, help in any way, and of course, shed some new light on life.

Fish