Time on our hands.

How much time are we given? What do we do with that time?

I know that many people have written about this. They've asked the same question time and time again. It's a thought, that maybe not at the front of our minds, always lies someplace inside the human mind and heart.

We all contemplate our mortality at some point in our lives. It's like pulling into a rest area on life's highway. We look back at where we've been, try to look ahead into the fog and swirling mists of the future and make out what we can of the uncertain. Some would call this taking an assessment of our lives. Sorting the important matters from the mundane, realizing that the things that were important in the moment may not have been so important after all.

I've had a few of these experiences. They seem to occur at random times and spark momentary changes. By momentary changes I mean living a life of reflection day by day. It's hard to always think about your actions in the context of an entire life well lived. There comes a point where the day to day activities become the norm again. A few days, months, or even weeks later there is another "life moment" and it all starts again.

My wife is celebrating a birthday today, and I wish her a happy one, while I'll be celebrating a birthday in a little less than two months. This seems like the perfect time to reflect and look forward. I ask myself, what have I done that I could do better, what will I change in the future, and what have I enshrouded myself with that I should completely cast aside.

To some this will seem like the annual ritual performed at the New Years holiday where resolution are made and people resolve to break them. Instead, what I'm talking about goes much deeper than this. Take time. Ask yourself, "Who am I?," "Where am I going?," "How did I get here?," "Was it worth it?". I believe that when we have answered these questions we can then implement a journey plan for life. And remember some of the most exciting things you see on any trip are those you see when you venture off track for a bit. So don't get hung up on the momentary sidetracks from your journey plan. Just cut the wheel and casually bring it back to center. Have a great day.