THE BALANCING ACT
Yesterday I could have died. And yet here I am, more alive than ever before. It is, however, a very strange feeling to walk down the streets knowing that I might not be here tomorrow. I am looking at people and watching them interact. I look around myself and observe the nature, the buildings surrounding me and the streets I am walking on, with my friends. And all of a sudden everything somehow becomes so much brighter and lighter. I notice both the positive and the negative aspects of people. Their joy, their sufferings, their pain, and in an instant they don’t feel like strangers anymore. In July, I saw a quote in a hostel in Florence which said: ‘’There are no strangers, only friends whom you haven’t met yet’’. And it just hit me today that we are all connected and that we never know when our paths will cross and we will turn from strangers to friends.
Today I notice people on the streets and I think, “What are the stories of these people? How much happiness or pain are they carrying within themselves?” –Be it a young man who was checking stones in the Malmo Festival and saying how sensitive he is, or a monk who was buying street food for lunch or an old friend’s conscience and self-awareness about life and the difficult choices that he has to make in order to create the future he wants for himself.
How much do we really know about each other or about ourselves? How much do we want to know? And why do we place people into labels like “stranger”, “friend”, “acquaintance”, “co-worker”, “professor”, “family”, in a list that never ends?
What happened to me yesterday was the most beautiful experience I’ve ever had. I feel so grateful that I could have died because had it not been so, I wouldn’t be able to see the world as I see it today. I appreciate everything a lot more, I feel alive, I enjoy the present as if there’s no tomorrow and every single person I meet throughout the day, I value them even more.
And now, each day I choose to re-define my life. I can either choose to suffer and live the life I don’t want to, or I can choose to let go off the suffering and take brave decisions, follow my path and embrace everything with love, empathy, compassion, kindness and sincerity. Every day I choose to live the way I want to, because I cannot waste my time on things, work and places that do not align with my values and adhere to my purpose on this Earth.
Today I still am the same person as I was yesterday, but just a better version. Yet now, I have really started valuing my life and respecting its vulnerability.
And I can only wish for the people who come across this blog, to embark on a journey of happiness, fulfillment, love and appreciation. I hope you find your balance in life, too. I hope you go with the wind and let yourselves live the fantasy you have always had, but never for some reason allowed it.
Time and life are precious. If we don’t value it today, we might not have a chance to value it tomorrow.
