The Value of Time & Presence As We Grow Older
A Reminder: We are the youngest we are today. Savor each moment and truly live.
I never understood what it meant when time was going by so fast in my teens and 20s.
Growing up, many adults in my life have told me that life moves 30mph in your 30s, 40mph in your 40s, 50mph in your 50s, and so on and so forth.
Though, I probably do not fully understand what it truly means to have time slip through your hands, I am slowly but surely, starting to realize the true meaning of presence.
I often find myself lost in the nostalgia of when life was more simple:
Where going out to play with friends after school was so easy and guaranteed.
Where coming home to hang out with your brother at home was granted.
Where you didn’t have to schedule months in advanced and drive 300+ miles to see your baby nephew, sister-in-law, and brother.
Where my friends and I could show up to each others houses without notice and watch tv.
Where the world just didn’t seem this scary.
I have been so preoccupied spending the last decade trying to make ends meet that I had failed to realize how fast the time had passed. Which I am sure many people can relate.
But what I think hurts the most looking back is seeing how blind to all of it I was.
I was so honed in on surviving and so desperately wanting to achieve my idea of success that I sacrificed so much time away from my family and friends. Even now, I’m still split between what I truly want and my obligations to my work that I don’t necessarily feel the most passionate about.
It’s scary even knowing right now that I am oblivious to so much more and that I don’t have a third eye to these things. Things that could prevent me from regretting not having been so present.
While so lost in thought and the grind of life, most of my friends have gotten married and are mothers & fathers to their newborn children who are growing up too fast.
Though now, I am given a second chance to live my life on my terms, I still find myself struggling with my priorities, wants, and needs.
I truly realize how rare and special those moments were and still are with friends and family.
Given our responsibilities and obligations, it is not easy to schedule get togethers that were so simple at one point.. But learning how to be present is probably one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself.
