We can learn so much from kids. What I learn about most when I’m with my nieces is joy. See, kids aren’t caught up with bills and jobs and all the other responsibilities that we let weigh us down daily. Does that mean our stress is warranted? Nope…because kids know something we’ve long forgotten…today is the only day that really matters. As we grow older we lose sight of today and begin wasting our time dwelling on the past and putting things off to the future. Kids are worried about one thing, RIGHT NOW. And that is why children get to experience a kind of joy that we long ago lost. The older I get, the more I realize that we could all benefit from a child’s mentality. The past and the future that seems to consume us, are mere fragments of our imagination.
Right now is the only thing that’s real. It’s the only time anything can get accomplished.
Like the permanent sign I recently saw in a bar that read “Free beer tomorrow”, tomorrow will always be tomorrow. Today is the only day to live, love, chase your dreams, watch the sunset, make that career change, move to that dream destination, ask out that girl, make up with your wife, start the exercise program. Maybe that dream you’ve been longing for can’t happen in it’s entirety today but you can always take steps today to get closer. What you’ll find is that action breeds joy. Whether you do something monumental today to work towards your dreams or simply take the time to stop and gaze up at the stars, something you love but never do, you’ll find joy because you are DOING something rather than THINKING about doing something. So wake up everyday and act like a kid. Don’t take yourself too seriously, let your imagination run wild and laugh for no reason. Most of all, be laser-focused on today, the one and only day you can truly make things happen.
The Dalai Lama said it best:
