The Jar of Precious Seconds

I’m in touch with a great friend on an almost daily basis. We talk about what’s up in our lives, writing, ideas for things…whatever comes to mind.

I’m lucky to have this friend. It’s a rare thing when a couple days go by that I’m not reminded that I have a goal to write daily, or that I have other things I want to do. These are the things we talk about, and because of that, it’s rare for a couple days to pass without stepping back and appreciating the effort I’ve made in my life to use my time wisely.

The Jar of Precious Seconds

When my friend and I talk about the stresses in life we choose to ignore, we say, “I can’t let that steal my seconds,” or “I’m not opening my jar for that.” We know what the other is talking about. The Jar is a metaphor for the time we have before we die — each second of our lives.

This friend and I don’t believe in an afterlife; our time right now is all we have. Outside of the things that come with being an adult (day jobs, maintaining homes and cars…things like that), we get to choose how those seconds are used.

The Empty Jar

There will come a day when the jar is empty of these precious seconds. It could happen before I finish writing this entry…it could happen in so many more years. But…there will be a day that my time runs out. It’s not that I weigh everything in my life against every option, but…when I die — when my Jar of Precious Seconds is empty — I want the majority of those free seconds to have mattered
.

I don’t want to look back and think, “Man, I spent a lot of time arguing online with people I didn’t even respect.” I don’t want to look back on all the television I watched. I don’t want to think of all the time listening to people say really crappy things about other people, instead of talking about bigger things.

Seconds Ticking Down

We all get to decide what we want to do with our seconds, and if getting drunk and playing video games is what you want to do as much as I want to write novels, that’s cool. I just hope people understand that it goes both ways: I’d rather write this entry after working on a novel for 35 minutes on a Sunday night instead of watching Breaking Bad. I’m sure I’d love Breaking Bad, but without ever watching an episode, I know I like writing or going for a walk with my wife even more.

So that’s what I do with my seconds…

The Power of One Second

There will be a second in my life when I take my last breath. I was there when my father took his last breath (I was 22). I was there when my sister took her last breath (I was 33). Just like that, a life ends.

But until that second comes, we all have so many seconds at our disposal.

It’s a powerful life when you realize that most of us are fortunate enough to be in control of what we do with the majority of those seconds. Why people don’t do more with them is none of my business. I can only choose to spend my seconds as I see fit.