02/09/2026
“Life is short.
Make the most of every moment.
If there’s something you’ve been wanting to do, do it now, before it’s too late.
Hold your loved ones close, you never know when will be the last time”
These phrases are bandied about all the time.
I don’t know about you, but I find them pretty depressing.
Surely our lives aren’t meant to be a packed itinerary.
Seamless walk-to-wall activities to fill the bucket we’re all meant to have.
Or is that the bucket we kick? Not sure.
Lists of must-dos and must-haves and must-sees.
So that we can never feel a single pang of regret on our death-beds about places we haven’t been to, planes we haven’t jumped out of, celebrations we haven’t partied hard enough at, selfies we haven’t taken, bridges we haven’t bungee-jumped off.
Is there nothing more to our lives except racing against time?
And making sure we haven’t missed out on a single thing that others have ticked off their never-ending list.
Surely our lives are meant to be experienced as we move through them, rather than stuffed full of pre-ordered activities?
If we constantly have a list in front of us, do we leave any room for life to unfold at its own pace?
Or are we so concerned with not missing a single thing, we don’t even notice the little twists and turns that take us somewhere totally unexpected?
And what about the big twists and turns.
The ones that shake everything up, so all our plans come tumbling about our ears.
They too are about the unfolding adventure.
They too are precious.
But almost certainly won’t be on The List.
We are not wasting our lives when we have to turn off the beaten track.
Turn off the noise.
Turn in a different direction.
We are exploring what it means to live.
Not a curated life, but an authentic one.