Every once in a while I’ll come across something that for some reason makes me stop and reflect. That was the case when I discovered this quote from Aldous Huxley:

“Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted.”

I’ve been thinking and reflecting a great deal about life these days. Probably because I’ve recently celebrated another birthday. Another mile on the odometer of my life. At some point in life birthdays become somewhat humbling, especially when you realize that the majority of your birthdays are probably behind you. The once infinite future seems suddenly finite. Not so much that the end is near; rather, you gain a new found respect for this thing we call time.

It’s surreal contemplating that I’ve probably gone past the half way point of my life. Life, like time, is one of those things that I’ve unfortunately just taken for granted.

HANDS OF TIME Taking things for granted is quite a dangerous proposition. We assume our health will always be good. We assume that the job we have and the money it generates will always be there. Yet each day we are reminded that life doesn’t always work out the way we sometimes assume it will.

Perhaps the thing we take most for granted is time. And why not? We’ve always had more. We’ve always had tomorrow. But at some point there will be no more tomorrows. At some point we will have seen our final sunrise. We just don’t know when that time is coming. But it is coming.

That being said, where do we go from here? As the sands of time pass through the hourglass of our lives, each of us has a decision to make. We can either continue as we are, searching, seeking and assuming, or we can begin to truly appreciate and savor all that it is we currently already have.

What is it that you are taking for granted in your own life?

ACTION PLAN Take a few moments to think about the many relationships in your life. Are you actively nurturing and growing these relationships, or are they on autopilot and cruise control? Deeply inspect and reflect upon the status of all your relationships. List just one thing you can do to rejuvenate and re-energize any relationships that have grown cold or stagnant. But don’t just list it, live it. The results will be amazing.

Living Half Full means celebrating all that you are and all that you have in your life right now. It’s the polar opposite of taking things for granted. It’s respecting both the grandeur and fragility of our lives and our relationships. The challenge is to respect and embrace each moment with that grandeur and fragility.

Love is for today.

Love is for right now.

Just in case tomorrow isn’t an option.

It’s a great day to be you!