Some of you may remember from some of my blog entries my best friend Diana who serves in Haiti as a teacher at the Mission of Hope. Most of us have probably seen footage and pictures of the devastation from the earthquake that hit just a few short weeks ago. Please keep Diana and the Mission of Hope in your prayers as they seek to help the Haitian people in every way possible. You can also find Diana's blog under my favourite links at the side.
I've been thinking a lot lately about life and it's elements in all their uncertainties. I've been reading Donald Miller's latest book entitled "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years". The book is all about what he learned while he edited his life. I'm enjoying the book and as usual it's giving me lots to think about. Donald explores the idea of 'story' in great detail. What makes a story? How do you know if you're living a good one? How do you change your story? I think I find myself resonating with these ideas in a big way. I'm a contemplative thinking person which sometimes drives me nuts because I feel like I am always overanalyzing things and my mind rarely stops for a break! These are the kinds of things I'm thinking about at this stage of my life...and maybe you think about them at every stage, I'm not really sure? I'm in my 20's and I want to live a great story. I want to make choices that I won't regret. The message at church last Sunday was about Seizing the Day. The message made me want to see the movie 'Dead Poets Society' where the term 'Carpe Diem' was made famous. I rented the movie last night and watched it. It's kind of a dark movie with a very meaningful message. If you haven't seen it I would highly recommend it. The ending of the movie caught me very off guard and it didn't go where I thought it would go. Endings like this leave you thinking about what happened long after the film is over. I won't give the ending away in case you haven't seen it.
What I believe is the number one thing you take from the film: CARPE DIEM. The latin term for SEIZE THE DAY.
Seize the day. Grab it, take hold of it, be fully present in the moment, it's yours, don't let it slip away. How do I live like this? I love to dream. I dream about the future and what it might hold. Sometimes I get disappointed when things don't turn out like I thought they would. I suppose maybe the dreamer in me sets me up for disappointment sometimes. I think it's wonderful to dream but I also want to live in a way that I am seizing the day. If I had to go back and edit my life I don't want to have regrets. As I've been thinking about this more and more I realize that seizing the day requires me to act. I need to be the one making intentional choices. I want to make the most out of my relationships, I want to love with my whole heart, I want to laugh and cry. I want my heart to be so soft that it breaks over injustice and hurts for people when they hurt.
I heard this artist that I like being interviewed the other day about what's going on in Haiti. His name is Matt Morris. I can't remember the exact term he used but he described this latin word that means "we"......he said in Africa they use this term that essentially talks about connectedness.....so if your grandma is sick you wouldn't say my grandma is sick, you would say our grandma is sick because if one person is hurting then we all are hurting. We are so connected that when you hurt, I hurt. So if Haiti is hurting, we all are hurting and so we all must get involved in helping. I love this term. I love this description. I've seen this happen as I've watched people get involved with Haiti. Like Jay Z says '"let's get's involved with them, hand in hand with them, until they get strong again". It's empowering to see people love well. I think loving well is seizing the day.
I need to think about this more. I think it should be thought about and it should be talked about with other people. I have come to believe that living passionately is contagious. If the earthquake in Haiti has reminded us of anything, it's that life is precious and we need to make the most of each moment because today is a gift. What we do with that gift is up to us. So I think I'm going to start trying to seize the day, I'll let you know how it goes!
And maybe if it's contagious, you'll try it too?
Sweet Dreams and may you love well today,
~Darc
