Once in a lifetime
People are always talking about “once in a lifetime” experiences. These are the experiences that many of us live for and seek out. We want to have as many "once in a lifetime" experiences as possible in our short lives. A once in a lifetime experience is, by definition, something so crazy or cool that you think you’ll probably only get the chance to do once in your life.
I was talking to a friend the other day and he said, and I quote, “This quarantine is just such a once in a lifetime opportunity.” To which I literally made him repeat himself to make sure I heard him properly. I mean, I guess he is right, hopefully this is the only time this happens in our lifetime, but I always thought of that phrase as being used in only positive instances. But the more we talked the more we discussed how we could see quarantine as a POSITIVE once in a lifetime experience.
Take me, for example, as a college student this will probably be the longest continuous stretch of time I will spend at home with my family ever again. I know many people are sick of their families by this point and want nothing more than to leave their house, but I still stand by my point. There are plenty of people who have been given an unprecedented, and probably never to be replicated, amount of time with their kids/spouses/families/pets/etc.
Don’t get me wrong, this is a serious thing and not something to be taken lightly, I understand that. There are plenty of people who see this as one of the darkest times in their life. But I think we are called to find and spread joy even, and especially, in the difficult times. And maybe, depending on your situation, this can be an unprecedented opportunity to help and serve those who are more deeply impacted by this than you. I think the world needs a little bit more of that mindset right now.
When you think you are having a once in a lifetime opportunity I often associate that with excitement. So that is my challenge to you this week: what would happen if you tried to perceive this quarantine as a “once in a lifetime opportunity to _____.” I want you to fill in that blank. Maybe it is just to spend more time with your family, or maybe it’s to start a project you’ve been thinking about for a while, like me with this newsletter. The possibilities are endless, and I think a powerful thing could happen if we all just had a little bit of a cognitive shift.
Stay Motivated,
-Dan
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