Seize the moment!

I have a friend who lives by a three-word philosophy: 'Seize the moment'. Just possibly, he may be the wisest man on this planet.

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

I got to thinking, one day, about all those people on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back.

From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.

How many people out there will eat at home because their spouse didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word 'refrigeration' mean nothing to you?

How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched Jeopardy! on television?

I cannot count the times I called my brother and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" He would gasp and stammer, "I can't. I have to mow the yard... My car is dirty... I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast... It looks like rain." And, my personal favorite: "It's Monday."

Because we cram so much into our lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect:
We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get the babt potty-trained.
We'll entertain - when we replace the living-room carpet.
We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.

Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on," and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."

When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, he is open to adventure and available for trips. He keeps an open mind on new ideas. His enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with him for five minutes and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

Last summer I took a trip to Sydney, Australia with friends from church. If I had thought about the decision to go or not for too long, I probably would have found a reason to stay home. I'm glad I went. The experience changed my life and I will never be the same.

My lips have not touched a milk-shake in several years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my gut with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process.
The other day, I stopped the car and bought an extra large vanilla shake. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.

Now ... go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to ... not something on your 'SHOULD DO' list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And, why are you waiting?

[Currently playing on my IPod: Everywhere I Go by The Call]