It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it.
On The Shortness of Life – Seneca
On The Shortness of Life was a quick read but one of the most thought provoking books that I’ve read in a while. It made me realize how much of our life we waste on things that have no value, things that we will forget even happened.
We are willing to take our most valuable asset and give it away without thinking twice about it. Seneca Says we should imagine that we know exactly how many days we have left to live and start being more selective with how we spend that time. If you knew you only had 6 days to live you probably wouldn’t waste any time watching youtube videos or talking to people you don’t like.
The truth is that we do have a limited time on this planet and we spend most of it like we have an infinite amount. The biggest regret of the dying is wishing they had the courage to live a life true to themselves, not the life others expected of them. Think about this and reflect on past years, could you have done more with the time you had?
Personal Review
I may not be the most qualified as a 21-year old to talk about regret and old age but I see it all around me every day. I have family members and friends (myself included) that don’t value time as they should.
One of my biggest fears is growing old and having no successes to show for it, or even worse, not having tried to succeed at all.
