Luxury Living: Seize the Day

Steph is back from Australia, and over the past week, we briefly discussed what we wanted to focus on in this newsletter. This week has also brought some developments that have greatly influenced my inspiration. I’ll start with myself—deliberately, as you’ll soon understand why.

Midway through the week, I had an off-day. I didn’t feel like doing anything, worried about relatively minor discomforts, and then started to feel sorry for myself. Rational thinking goes out the window in moments like that—even when you compare yourself to a friend who’s currently in the hospital and clearly much worse off than you.

The message I received the following day hit me hard and instantly pushed everything else to the background. So much so, in fact, that I wondered why I had been so upset. The person I mentioned in an earlier blog had just learned that the chemotherapy hadn’t worked. Worse still, the tumor had grown back to the same size it was before the surgery…

So incomprehensible, so sad, so unfair...

How can you say or write anything meaningful with that knowledge in the back of your mind? With the awareness that someone’s fate is sealed? Of course, everyone’s fate is ultimately sealed. We just usually don’t know when. And that’s a blessing. Because once you do know that your end is near, as a fact, your entire perspective changes.

"Live every day as if it's your last" or "seize the day"—these are common expressions. They serve as reminders that our time here is temporary and that we should make the most of it. Especially in moments when there’s no sign of positivity on the horizon, when you’re doubting your own abilities, your worth, or your role in this life. Or when you’re dissatisfied with where you are now and where you’d like to be. At such times, it helps to reflect on what you’ve already achieved—that it’s through trial and error that you’ve become the person you are today. A person on their own timeline, someone with their own unique experiences.

As I write this, a thought comes to mind—a perspective Steph and I once shared, inspired by a reel or another blogger. The core of it is that we’re all just a speck in the grand timeline of humanity. Nothing more. And it becomes even more confronting when you realize that only two or three generations after us will know we ever existed. After that, we fade into oblivion. Unless you end up in the history books. But for most of us, we’ll be remembered by our grandchildren, maybe the generation after that—and then it’s over. You no longer live on in memory. As if you never existed…

Steph and I had agreed that in this blog we would imagine ourselves at age 90. It’s somewhat like our blog from March 7th, when we made a top 30 list of things we’d want to tell our younger selves. This time, the approach is more about what we still want to do or accomplish in our lives. What’s still on your bucket list?

To be honest, with everything that has happened this past week, I’m finding it hard to focus on this. I can’t seem to keep my attention on it, and at the same time, I feel guilty—unfair even—that I can still make future plans.

I always thought that if you knew your last day had arrived, you’d want to do all kinds of things on that final day. But reality is much harsher. Our friend, who has now received this devastating news as a fact, no longer has any future perspective. There is no longer light at the end of the tunnel. And that makes everything tangible in life suddenly feel less tangible. Everything you thought life was about suddenly seems completely irrelevant. That applies to possessions most of all, but also to knowledge, experiences...

I want to end with a quote I shared this morning with Mil and Mika. Tony Robbins was the one being quoted, although I’m not sure if he’s the original source:

"The key to happiness is growth and contribution."

In my opinion, these eight words capture the essence. The core of our existence. The purpose of our presence here. The awareness that your contribution—to others, to the earth—as well as your personal growth, is the highest good. And growth is a broad concept. It can happen precisely through your contributions to others, but of course also through acquiring knowledge. That too makes you a richer person. Whether it’s reading books, traveling and discovering other cultures, working, or studying.

As I’ve said before: I’m where I want to be. But I don’t want to stand still—I want to keep exploring.And I believe that applies to every human being.

Have a lovely Sunday!

Carlo

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Main Key Takeaways:

• Our presence in terms of the earth's lifespan is insignificant – We are only a dot on the time line of our earth

• The key to happiness is growth and contribution – Your personal growth you can influence yourself

• The blessing of the ability to have a bucket-list – Only perspective gives space to a wish list

To continue your journey and start making meaningful changes, here’s a book recommendation to help you take the first step:

Life Inspiration (Book recommendation): 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think, here