Life Is Not Short. It’s Actually Pretty Long
“This ship is ours. You may not aboard the ship unless you give us the right password.”
“But I don’t know the password, what should I do?”
“Then you may not aboard the ship, and we will sail without you. But today is a good day, and I will allow you to give it a guess. Just ONCE.”
“Hmmm, is the password, P-A-S-S-W-O-R-D?”
“That’s right, you may come with us and travel to the world and beyond.”
As soon as I said this, my crews and the newcomer got ready. They all scurried onto the platform of the playground, and we all screamed, “The ship is sailing!” Then, one by one, we all slid down the slides and landed on the new land. The sand on the ground of the playground got in my shoes, but I didn’t care, for we have arrived to conquer the new land.
“This is so fun,” I thought, “I never want to grow up and be adults. They all have their shoulders sagged and dreary.”
Well, unfortunately, that idea never happened, and here I am, a 21-year-old guy who has no clue what has happened to his life. Looking back, it seems like a lot of time has passed since this memory. All the events that have happened in the 10 year period went past me in a flash second. Good or bad, the memories were there, and it seemed clear to me that time has passed very very quickly. Perhaps, the motivational quotes were right. “Time goes fast, and you should cherish every moment with your friends and family. Oh, and also, don’t forget to smile.”
I could have ended my thought there and made the conclusion that life is too short, so quit worrying and enjoy life. But then, an epiphany came. “Wait a minute, I’m still only 21 years old! There’s still so much time left, and I should stop thinking about how to cherish my life and start planning for a better future.”
Don’t get me wrong. Time does go pretty fast. I mean, I’m constantly aghast by how quickly an hour, a day, heck, even a year went in a blink of an eye. Yet, that doesn’t mean that our lives are pretty short. After all, considering the average lifespan is around 80 and is constantly increasing, you’ve got a heck lot of time in this world before you get to see your ancestors. That’s why it’s absolutely ridiculous to think that you should enjoy every moment and make “Carpe diem” as your motto.
Do you know what happens if you enjoy your life a bit too much and follow the “Live in the present moment” too strictly? That’s right, you’re going to become a hobo.
Jokes aside, with just a bit more long-term thinking, most people can achieve so much more in their lives simply by having better strategies and playing the long-term game. And to do so, we have to shift our perspectives and see our lives as a long journey instead of a short one to better prepare ourselves for what is to come.