Feeling The Moment

We all agree that life is made up of a succession of moments; or at least, that's how I see it.  Someone clever, who used to be in my life quite a long time ago, used to say: "A moment is over once you've thought about it."

To be perfectly honest, I've never really allowed myself to think about that phrase too much.  I guess I'm scared that my brain might cease up from trying to over-think and over-analyze it.  Like trying to divide by zero; we all know that the universe will implode, and for the sake of the greater good I figured I better not risk it!  So, I'm sorry to disappoint, but you're going to have to figure that one out for yourself.

Because here's the thing: if the moment is over once it has crossed your mind, doesn't that mean that life is made up of a lot of lost and fleeting moments?  Which kind of makes me wonder if life's moments are supposed to be slippery, lost and mostly gone.  A little negative, don't you think?  I mean, it makes me feel like I have absolutely no control over my moments, which I highly doubt to be true.

Now, before you label me a control-freak, understand one thing: I absolutely, without a doubt am one.  Just like everyone else on this planet.  We all wish to be in control of certain - if not all - aspects of our lives.  But this is actually not the point I'm driving towards.

Quite some time ago I read a very interesting article written by very clever individuals in which they speculate what it would be like if we were able to live forever, or at the very least, a few hundred years.  We've all toyed with the idea of having more time at our disposal.  Let's think about Vampires (bear with me) and their ability to live for hundreds, sometimes thousands, of years.  They are able to learn to play every instrument imaginable, obtain every degree they wish, speak all the languages of the world, should that be their desire.  All because they have so much time on their hands.

But in the article mentioned above, the very clever individuals come to the conclusion that it wouldn't be so much fun to live hundreds of years.  Why?  Because our perception of time changes.  Think about it; when you were 8 years old your days stretched before you in endless moments of fun, sun, games and ice-cream.  The older you get, the less time you think you have.  Your days feel shorter, the years fly by and before you know it you haven't even found the time to make arrangements for your retirement.  The longer you live, the quicker time flies by; so, if you live to be 200 or even 300 years old, time would be a fleeting and unobtainable blur.

What is my point, then?  Maybe it's a good thing that we only get to live, on average, 70 to 80 years. It's difficult knowing that you won't live forever, because it's scary.  And losing someone is such a stark reminder that life is fleeting in the grand scheme of things.  But don't let that overwhelm you. I believe we appreciate life more when we know we don't have too much of it.  And I also believe it is possible to slow down time.  Yes, yes I do!

Make the decision to not let your time be stolen by things, people or moments that force you to rush.  We all know what these are in our lives; it's different for everyone.  I've said it before and I'll say it again:  Slow down.  Walk slower.  Pause somewhere.  Open your eyes.  See things clearly.  

Walk.  Slower.

Age of Integrity

First, let me apologize for the cold sweat and the shivers down your spine that the word up there just caused. I know the feeling and let me tell you, I’m not a big fan of the discomfort I feel whenever I’m confronted with the big “I”. When this word first cropped up in the recesses of my mind, I decided to Google it. Big mistake let me tell you. A big mistake if you hate the truth, I have to add. I spent approximately five seconds looking at the definition and realized that I, like so many others, had no idea exactly what it meant.

Wikipedia’s first sentence immediately had me swallowing uncomfortably:  “…a concept of consistency of actions, values, methods, measures, principles, expectations and outcomes.”

Dictionary.com didn’t help much either: “…soundness of moral character, honesty.”

And the Mirriam Webster version added the final accusing nail to the already doomed coffin of justification: “…Incorruptibility; an unimpaired condition; the quality or state of being complete or undivided.”

I don’t know about you, but all of a sudden I feel completely and utterly useless and incompetent.  It begs the question: Who can truly live up to displaying a life of integrity?

And then the justification steps in. That coffin I mentioned earlier?  It’s made up entirely of our justifications; trying to convince ourselves that integrity is an unobtainable virtue and as soon as we’ve convinced ourselves that integrity is not as important as we are lead to believe, we bury ourselves in a life of mediocrity and slavery to lies.

Do you know what I do when confronted with something like integrity? I close my eyes and hope it goes away. Like an ostrich I try and ignore my responsibilities. It’s not right, it’s not healthy and it won’t help me in the long run, but I still do it.

What do you think will happen if we keep ignoring integrity and it becomes extinct? I believe it will be an apocalypse of sorts. We will wake up to a world of ash and dust, breathing in chemicals that will leave us gasping for air. We will have to start a revolution just to ensure that integrity becomes a part of everyday life again.

And here’s the thing, integrity isn’t optional. God tells us in His Word: “Just say ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong.” (Matthew 5:37 MSG); and also in James 5:12 (MSG): “Just say yes or no. Just say what is true. That way, your language can’t be used against you.” It doesn’t get simpler than that: Say what you mean, mean what you say and do what is right.  Don’t bend the truth to cover your behind and if you’re doing something that is technically not illegal but you still feel uncomfortable doing it? Guess what, integrity demands that you stop doing it immediately. We shouldn’t even be wandering around in the “grey areas”.

Look, I’m not saying this is an easy thing to do, but it’s definitely something we are all called and empowered to do. We have to be soldiers and warriors of the age of integrity. Ha! I’m getting all excited! I’ve always wanted to be a warrior. And look, I’ve even found us an anthem:

"I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones, enough to make my systems blow, welcome to the new age." - Radioactive by Imagine Dragons.