Perspectives

If you knew you had one day or week or month or year to live, how would that knowledge change how you live?

This is not the first time this question has been asked. But aside from some breezy comments, I've never seen it cause a change in behavior, not really.

But it's a perfectly valid question: obviously for all of us we could have only 1 hour left to live, even. If so, and we knew it, what would we do with it?

That's a personal question. The answers probably range from sheer hysteria to sublime acts.

The point of asking it is not to encourage a sense of impending doom, it is to create perspective on what we value and what is trivial and of no worth.

As for us together, and myself, this move and mission preparation do cause a related set of questions to be asked. In some cases they pertain to belongings: can I live without this? In others its a matter of time management. And then there are the dreams: if not now, then when?

Belongings we can live without. I would be willing to give up several of them. But not all, not all by any stretch. (Though of course at that critical last breath, these have-t0-haves change their status, also. Even so, we hope one or another of our descendants will love a prized possession as much as we have and so we aren't entirely letting go.)

Use of time is more flexible, and requires in many ways tougher decisions. What do we do, by habit or self-indulgence or whim, that we could give up doing? TV is the usual first answer, not necessarily followed by action. We have in fact given up TV. Several times. Mostly, we don't like it so that's easy.

But the whole idea of giving up is not really what this is about: it's about shifting the use of time from one good thing to another better thing.

For example, I have given up BNI. It's non-useful, unimportant, a huge time-sink.

Other things are trickier: to do an errand now instead of doing without and combining it with others later. Driving when gas is expensive, or staying home just because it is expensive. OR because we are in a boycotting mood about the fact that oil companies are now making the largest profits in our economy.

So there's a question: would you stay home from something you wanted or needed to do to boycott the use of gas?

Another time-related choice has to do with the foods we eat: cooking takes time; growing things takes a lot of time. Is that time well-spent? Or is fast food, manufactured food, a viable alternative?

And then there's putting food on the table in the sense of making a living.

That question is really loaded: how much do we need, as in NEED? How much of what we use our time to create earnings to buy is actually a burden?

How much do we DARE to do without?

These questions begin to take instruction from our core values. In fact, if we aren't totally sure what those are, asking these questions will begin to clarify them.

And then there's the final question of dreams. Are we willing to change to move toward our Perfect Day, our ideal day? What are the principles to apply to such outrageous self-indulgence as to want to live our ideal day - or perhaps it is our birthright that should never have self-denial applied to it.

In actuality, I think that one's perfect day has to do with what is best for one's family (however defined) instead of simply one's self. But that is probably obvious and merely mentioned in passing.

How does one decide on how to spend these resources and consider moving toward these dreams?

I think there is one underlying principle that can determine the relative value of things, time use, and even dreams. It has to do with the increase in knowledge and personal growth, which is the increase in knowledge, perspective, and wisdom.

So as we enter this time of transition, it makes us more poignantly aware that we can't put off the dream - or of course we could. But at our peril and only through indifference and a failure to ask those honing questions.