This was originally written by me on Facebook Notes on March 13, 2013.
I know what you’re thinking, I wrote that down wrong. Like most of you, I grew up hearing over and over “Life is short; live it to its fullest.” What a disservice that was to me. Though not conscientiously aware of it, I’m pretty sure that this phrase has more to do with how I lived my life up to this point than anything else I can remember. And I don’t think that was a good thing.
I remember a long time ago, I can only guess that that I was 3 or 4 (or so) and I was having the time of my life. I distinctly remember having the thought “If I ever forget this day, I know at that point I am old.” I remember the thought, but I have absolutely no clue what I was doing, so I must be old. And that’s okay. But what I know is, though I am starting my 58th trip around the sun, I still plan on being around for a long, long time. And THAT is my point: life is long, so you are able to live it to it’s fullest.
I have worked for more companies, had more jobs and titles, than I can recall without referring to several old resumes. I always felt the need to bounce around, do as much as I could, don’t waste any time, because, after all, life is short, live it to it’s fullest. My definition of living life to it’s fullest was to cram as much into it as I possibly could, experience a little of everything without spending too much time on any one thing. You know, I had plenty of time to enjoy those things a little bit more than I did.
So, if I could send a message to the generation of my granddaughter it would be, slow down. There will be things in the world that will excite you. Take the time to pursue them. If you enjoy what you are doing, it won’t be wasted time. If you find you don’t have the passion for it, there’s still plenty of time to try something else. Just don’t be so quick to give up on something just because you feel the urge to keep moving, doing something, so you’re not wasting this life you have been given. I wonder how this life would have been different if I had just invested a little more time along the way, putting out of my mind that I was bored, and had put more effort into finding the parts that excited me.
I guess if I had to come up with a really bad analogy, it would be something along the lines of “Life is like a sack of oranges…” I know in my mind that the sack of oranges has a limited shelf life before they are going to start going bad and become inedible. In the past, I would have taken the first orange, cut a hole in it, sucked the juice out and get on to the next one. Hurry before some of them go bad. What I’ve found is there is more to enjoy about an orange than just the juice. Look at it. The color is so intense. In fact, the color is so pure they just went ahead and named the color for the fruit. Smell it. Try to describe the scent of an orange. It is sweet, tart, clean, fresh, acetic, and more all at the same time. Feel it. Notice the texture of the rind. It is bumpy, has grooves, but is smooth, all at the same time. Open it and take a bite. Feel the individual little juice sacs with your tongue. Bite it between your teeth and feel the gush of juice that squirts forth. Taste it. Not just the juice that comes so easily, but also the pulp that retains a little bit more juice that you have to put the extra effort into harvesting.
Enjoying an orange to it’s fullest isn’t about just sucking the juice out of it, it’s about recognizing everything it has to offer. Life is the same thing…