There Are Only So Many Tomorrows

“Somebody should tell us right at the start of our lives that we are dying. Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it! I say. Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows.”

Michael Landon

I’ve been thinking . . . about the end of life. Wait. Wait. Wait. Don’t stop reading; this isn’t a morbid message. I promise. In fact, it’s all about living your life right now.

I got to thinking the other day: what if someone asked me to write on a 3 x 5 card how I lived my life to the fullest so that my advice could be passed on to other generations. What would my card say?

I never finished the card but thought I would pass on a few thoughts that ran through my head.

There is a wonderful scene in the movie Dead Poet’s Society that makes a good starting point. Mr. Keating is escorting his group of sophisticated, uptight, adventure impoverished students to the school's trophy case displays. Photos of earlier graduating classes are prominently displayed.

"Look at these pictures, boys," Keating challenges. "The young men you behold had the same fire in their eyes that you do. They planned to take the world by storm and make something magnificent of their lives. That was years ago. Now the majority of them are pushing up daisies. How many of them really lived out their dreams? Did they do what they set out to accomplish?" Then, with a dramatic move, Keating leans into his astounded class and passionately whispers, "Carpe diem! Seize the day!"

Contrast that attitude with the one depicted in the classic comedy movie “Groundhog Day” starring Bill Murray. In the movie, Murray repeatedly wakes up at the exact same time on the exact same day. Everyday is the same “Groundhog Day” – which he lives over and over again.

That script not only made for good humor, it also depicts the lifestyle of many people. They rise at the same time, eat the same thing for breakfast, head for work at the same time, slide into their comfortable work habits, punch out and head for home. Then, repeat the same thing again tomorrow.

It is relatively easy to physically live a long life in America. Statistics indicate 88,361 of every 100,000 persons reach 50 years of age, more than 70,000 make it to 70, and almost 17,000 live to age 85 or more. That doesn't mean these same numbers live lives of significance and value. We have little to do with how our life begins and, in some cases, the length of it but we can significantly affect the outcome.

Cultivate attitudes and skills that limit our chances to plateau. Seize the initiative to master each moment. Dismantle beliefs that life must be fair and good at all times. Establish priorities that reflect personal values. These are attributes indicative of people investing fully in the process of living.

I read a powerful story about the late Jim Valvano, former North Carolina State basketball coach. At age 47 he was suffering from terminal spinal cancer and reflecting on his life. He recalled an incident as a 23-year-old intensely competitive coach of a small college team. “Why is winning so important to you?” his players asked.

“Because the final score defines you,” Valvano replied.

“No,” the players insisted. “Participation is what really matters. Trying your best, regardless of whether you win or lose - that’s what defines you.”

Twenty-four years later, struggling with the horrible effects of chemotherapy, hanging onto life by a thread, Valvano realized, “Those kids were right. It’s effort, not result. It’s trying. God, what a great human being I could have been if I’d had this awareness back then.”

Life isn’t intended to be an all-or-nothing fight between winning and losing, misery and bliss, boredom and excitement. Life isn’t inherently good or bad. Life is life. Sometimes its okay, sometimes it’s invigorating. Sometimes comfortable. Sometimes unpleasant. Always inviting us to make the most of it.

There is no gift package waiting to move you from a spectator to active participant. You’ll have to make the discoveries on your own. It means challenging your present thinking, sometimes even creating additional problems. You may need to discover new ways of seeing yourself, life, and the possibilities contained in both. The journey starts when you believe that your life can become renewed and the future impacted.

What a great human being you’ll become when you endorse the principle that at the closing of each day you’re content with the way you lived it. Seize The Day!

Remember the infamous words of Erma Bombeck: “Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart.”

What would your card say?

“Life is the movie you see through your own eyes. It makes little difference what’s happening out there. It’s how you take it that counts.”

Denis Waitley