The Last In Line
The hand that writes and quickly moves away
Over the weekend I watched Rafael Nadal in what’s likely his final French Open. Rafa has dominated this event like no other, winning an untouchable 14 times.
He lost in straight sets after being dominated by a younger, stronger, faster opponent. I felt a tinge of regret watching the GOAT being bested and nearly turned it off.
Instead, I paused, took a deep breath and began watching with joyful intent.
At some point, everything we experience in our lives will be ‘the last time’. Unlike the clarity of watching an aging athlete and knowing they’re nearly finished, we rarely see these milestones coming.
Of course, there will come a day when you will die, and everything will have been done for the last time. But long before that, you will cease to have certain experiences in your life - things that you most definitely take for granted now.
Imagine if you could turn the so-called ordinary to extraordinary, simply by paying attention and recognizing the beauty of impermanence?
There will come a time when you’ll stop waking up at 5am to drive your daughter to hockey practice. Someday, you and a close friend will have your last argument. At some point, you’ll take your final swim in the ocean. All these and more will happen without any advance notice.
Same with cutting the lawn, brushing your teeth, texting your son, using a baby voice to talk to your cat and an infinite number of things we never stop to appreciate.
When recognized as ‘the last time’, who wouldn’t derive genuine joy by lingering a bit longer in traffic, embracing a slow line at the bank, or watching your favorite sports team come up painfully short in game #7?
I encourage you to take a moment to think of just a few of the things you’ll someday never experience again.
It’s likely a majority of us miss this inevitability on a daily basis. We take even obviously beautiful moments for granted and are generally caught in a nonstop cycle of rumination on a remembered past or imagined future.
This comes at the costly expense of noticing, experiencing and appreciating the now.
Every experience represents a finite opportunity to savor life on some level. Attention really is our one true sense of wealth yet most never invest in cultivating it.
Instead of complaining the next time you experience slow service, leave a much larger tip than your server probably deserves. When your friend tells that same tired story she’s shared a million times, smile quietly to yourself. That first summer day when you dive in a pool to go swimming, embrace the feeling of ice cold water on your body.
Everything can be precious when viewed through the lens of The Last Time.
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Communication is better when it goes both ways. Let me know what you think by connecting on LinkedIn or visit my nonprofit website. Our connection and shared experiences make all of us better.
Be easy,
JJ