Birthdays. They remind us about time. They remind us about our own time, what we’ve achieved, and how much time we’ve left here.
As another one passed I’ve remembered what I’ve done. All the good things and the bad things that I have done. All the good things and the bad things I haven’t done. I remembered giving up, accepting “that’s it”, and just letting go of everything that locked me inside my comfort zone. I was in a cocoon; safe, calm, yet building a hard shell against all the feelings, all the experiences, all the people. I’ve built a shell to accept that there’s no solution to my existential crisis, and things went dark. For years.
Then something happened. A combination of events, experiences, and the reminder of time passing switched something in my head. Permanently. There was no going back this time. The cocoon was no more.
Then I remembered who I was and shouted in the eye of the universe with my loudest voice beyond my imagination: there is not a single day, not a single minute to waste. There are no excuses. If you want something, do it. Everything flipped almost in an instant. 180 degrees.
Catch that train.
Run that marathon.
Jump into the ice.
Dance like it’s your last day.
Take photos.
Create moments.
Start a new project.
Learn an instrument.
Talk.
Walk.
Question.
Understand.
Meditate.
Bond.
Touch that warm sand with your bare feet.
Feel the feelings. All of them. Not just the good ones.
Fear.
Feel the anxiety.
Feel your rising heartbeat.
Thrive.
Love.
Hug.
Kiss.
Share moments.
Do stupid things to remember.
Believe.
You are meant to live every single good and “bad” feeling. It’s perfectly okay to feel everything to the deepest level, it’s okay to worry, it’s okay to be not okay, it’s okay to love, it’s okay to fear, it’s okay to face your deepest fears. It’s okay to panic. It’s okay to stay in that feeling. You are human. You are meant to feel. You are meant to be real.
You are real.
Go out and make the most of it. Break that cocoon.
Now.