Our mind has a special mechanism that compartmentalized and kept away thoughts of death, illnesses, accidents, crimes or other events that could take our life away, just as the wind that blew off the candle. Perhaps this is the only mechanism that keeps us sane, considering how fragile our life could be.
We are but just a tiny particle of dust in the whole of the universe. And if you are reading this post now, you are probably lucky enough to live in a considerately peaceful country. Death and other forms of suffering may just be a statistic to you, something you read in the news. At some point in time, it touches someone close to us. We grieve, we mourn, and we move on in life.
Do You Have Time or Time Had You?
Do You Have Time or Time Had You?Yet, our mind has a way to heal itself. This same mechanism that kept our sanity, is a double bladed sword, as it breeds assumptions that we would live to a ripe old age, that our health would never abandon us and that death is something far away. Well, if these thoughts sound familiar to you, then you have a problem, and the problem is you think you have time.
You think that these disasters will never happen to you, or you are special or lucky enough to have come so far. Well, if you had these thoughts, as I once had, I suggest that it is wise to think again.
It will be cruel to do this, but I have to break down the wall that partitioned your mind, that keeps you safe and sane. Why? I have no intention to bring news of doom and gloom to you, but I would only want you to wake up and see life as it is and live life as it should be. And say goodbye to COMPLACENCY, born from our habit of taking time for granted.
I have seen life being snuffed out in a blink of an eye. And to a lesser degree, I have seen families broken, cancers struck leaving people with months to live. And all these made financial problems, career issues, arguments, and relationships problem pale by comparison.
For three decades, I have live in the assumption, that all would be well until life decided to wake me up in a harsh manner, as silence whisper goes continuously unheeded. I now try hard to strike a balance between planning for the future, and taking one day at a time. I realised that I am not guaranteed anything, which makes small little things in life even more beautiful.
Wait Not For Tomorrow
The Problem Is You Think You Have Time
For it may never come. Not all of us get to live through the seasons of life. I have got to know children who will never know what it is like to grow old. The fact that we are still breathing today is a miracle itself. I am not asking us to live in paranoid as if death will take us tomorrow.
I am asking for us to be grateful and cherish what we have. Make peace with our past, let go of grudges, for in the grand scheme of thing, they have no significance and we gain nothing from it.
I am asking for us to look at our loved ones, and ask, have we forsaken them, taking them for granted and assuming that they will be around forever. Remember that there is no forever, the fact that they are here now is a gift itself.
If there are words you would like to tell them, then do that now, for there is no such thing as perfect timing, only sincerity in your actions and words.
To some, all they have is today. Complacency has always been a bane to success in any aspect of our life. It creeps into our life unnoticed, as we got comfortable with things that we had, and yet when things start falling apart, we wonder why us.
As you reflected on the illusion of time, and the complacency it put us into, do you feel the sense of urgency get out of this trap, start setting your priority right and start living life as it should be? I know I had.
The best time to start a blog was 20 years ago, the second best time is today. You are very right we must not be complacent. We must take a stand and get done what we intend! Great post, thanks.
Hi Kenny,
I think that the majority of people in this world take their lives for granted and cause themselves a lot of suffering by constantly ruminating about the past and putting off what we can do today until tomorrow.
As a result, most people don’t live rich and rewarding lives but are rather miserable. We never know when we’re going to die. It could be a couple of minutes from now, a couple of weeks from now, or thirty years from now. But the problem is that we don’t know for sure and we just make the assumption that we will be alive in the future.
Hi Ian,
You are absolutely right about the assumption people make that all will go well for them. Whether that is true or not, I think it is an absolute waste for anyone not living to their full potential not because they can’t but because they choose not to.
Hi, Kenny. I enjoyed your article. Isn’t it something how just a negative thought or two can throw a person off of his-her game? I have been steadily forcing myself to think outside the box and fortunately it has been working. I have NEVER been complacent and that is part of the problem. lol I don’t seem to ever be satisfied with my results…so I always try to do more. Great article.
Audra, it only takes one or two negative thoughts, to pull one person down into negativity. I’m glad you are one of those who have the positive strength that rejects complacency in life. Good for you.
Great article Kenny. I think its super important to put things in perspective. To many of us focus on what could make our lives better we often forget to stop and think about what we have. Everybody has something to be grateful for and everybody has somebody who wishes they were in their own shoes.
This is the hard core true reality, it’s sometimes hard to hear… but good, very good. Time is not on our side and the things we want to do should be done… I have been struggling with this lately and I know I have to make some changes… hard but necessary.
Thank you for this post, great read,
Vicky
Vicky,
Change is hard because we do not know what lies on the other side. But the comfort zone is even more risky because we are in the illusion that things are going to be good forever. The law of impermanence and change takes hold here. I believe you have the strength to make changes.
One of my close family members passed away at a young age a couple of years ago. That was the first time that I started to think about death and realized that the time can come anytime whether we are young or not. So, I understand what you mean by the illusion of time.
I have been distracted by unimportant aspects of life lately. I needed to hear this. I need to focus on purpose and not waste my life.
Thanks for reminding me this! Hope all is well with you, Kenny!
Hi Young,
I’m sorry to hear that. I wish you nothing but strength and wisdom as you move forward striving to achieve what you want in life. It’s great to hear from you again.
Great post Kenny!
The majority of us do take life for granted and not come to realize that tomorrow really could never come. If anyone has been apart of a tragedy then they know exactly what this means. But for those who haven’t live your day like its your last and never regret what goes on from day to day.
Very eye opening, thanks!
Some experienced tragedy earlier in life, and some it does not come until their grown up years. By then years have been wasted.
Hey, thanks a lot for this really inspiring post. I know a lot of people, and I am even including myself in this, who always say “I’ll do it tomorrow”, “I’ll do that someday” and it is a really debilitating mindset. They never think that there may not be a tomorrow, so we should get going now! I’m gonna bare this in mind and share your amazing advice to all my friends!
Hi Matt,
Time never waits for us. All we have is the here and now. Let’s use it wisely together.
Hi Kenney
True words, we can take our time for granted you have got me thinking. In the day to day rush, we call life it is all too easy to lose touch with the things that really matter in our lives. it’s only when problems arise that we are reminded of how little control we have over the precious time that we have. Moving forward I am going to try and make everyday count. Thank you for sharing your insights.
Alexander
Hi Alexander,
That’s because our mind tends to get comfortable when things become routine, it tricks us into thinking we have all the time in the world, where in fact we do not. All the best to you.
Kenny
This is a very sobering post. Very deep, actually. I understand what you are trying to say here. Yes, we don’t want to dwell on doom and gloom and think about things such as accidents, illness and death, but at the same time we shouldn’t be complacent, either, believing, erroneously, that we have all the time in the world to live life. Life truly is fleeting. We should make the most of every second of it and be grateful every single day that we have life.
Every day above the ground is a good day.
Hi Darren, You’ve got the essence of what I’m trying to convey well.
All we have is now I would rather waste money than time any day. Money can always be made back but once time is gone it will never come back. We have to make the most of every day we get in life and not put stuff off until tomorrow. We have to develop a habit of taking action immediately and we will be better off. Great article!
Hi,
Yes. Exactly. Some said time is money. But for me time is priceless and definitely way more valuable than money. Thanks for reading.
Kenny