What Makes Life Worth Living: Create Tiny Epic Moments

What do you think you will see as you fall asleep in death?

When I first read this quote, I thought “Unknown” talking about living a great life. Filling in the days with great success and great moments. Going through it. No regrets.

I have lived my whole life creating those great moments.

And maybe that’s what the “unknown” was talking about.

But I don't talk about it anymore when I think about the importance of my health.

English high school teacher Monique Cassidy wrote about a short story she had told her students called “Bullet in the Brain” by Tobias Wolff. In it, a man was shot in the head and died.

I don’t want to ruin this story for you, but the thoughts of this last man were not biggies.

His last thoughts were short, tangible moments. Mostly, playing baseball in the field at a young age.

Cassidy asked her students to write about important moments in their lives. Another student, who went to Paris, did not write about climbing the Eiffel Tour. She wrote about trading a loaf of bread with a friend for breakfast at the hotel, changing her croissant with a baguette.

Last week, my coach asked me what I had done so far this morning. He actually wanted me to write a poem about it to promote art.

“I don’t want to write about it,” I said. "I haven't done anything to write about."

My to-do list so far includes wrapping up laundry, making breakfast, and retrieving books from the library.

"That's fine," he said. : ”Write about it. That's life. ”

We all have a few moments that we will never forget in life. Great. When your spouse is on his or her knees. To score the winning goal. You can probably write your own short list.

But today, I want to celebrate the uneducated pleasure of very little moments that build your life. Because my coach was right. Those are the moments that build a living life in a collection.

Although I can begin to guess what will run through my mind when I die, I hope for a moment like this:

When my daughter was probably two or three years old, we were visiting my in-laws in Lake Michigan, living on the seaside A-Frame cabin called chalet.

We came in from the beach one afternoon very hot and my daughter and I went upstairs, opened the window air conditioner, slept on the cool white sheets and cried out for A / C.

While we slept, we should have looked at each other and after a few hours we opened our eyes at the same time.

At that moment, in a cool room on a hot day, I looked into her big chocolate eyes and felt that I could see in her soul, she was trusting, loving. I've really seen him. And I felt loved and loved.

We had a lot of great moments in our family. Going to China to pick up my daughter. Paris for my 40th birthday. Buying our dream house on my daughter’s first day of first grade.

But I hope there will be little moments like sleeping with my daughter that will shine before my eyes. Because in that moment, there was nothing but love.

When it comes to the end, isn't that all there is to it?

I invite you to remind yourself of those important little moments that have shaped your life.

Trying to run your memory, think about when you felt confident or content or you saw it, you really saw it. What happened at that moment? Who was there? Try to include all of your senses. What did you see? Do you hear? Do you feel?

How can you create such moments? Start by being present. They really saw the people. Look into their eyes and see. Notice the love all around.

Celebrate those moments.

Because while climbing to the top of the Eiffel Tour is history, trading bread with a friend is love.

While visiting the lake is fun, looking at my daughter's deep brown eyes and seeing her soul makes life worth living.

Thank you for the reminder, “Unknown.