Once upon a time, starting the day early and ending it late was only for special occasions but now it is a routine. Some start early to reach office or college on time while some start early to work out on their physical health. Some start early to compensate for the previous day while some start early just to facilitate the process for someone else starting early like Mothers or wives who wake up before their children or husbands to prepare for their schools or offices. Then there is no end to the day. It is a rarity for someone to plan and close the day on time. Some fall asleep while working on laptops while some fall asleep with a book pending on their chest. Some are forced to finish off the day just because it gets too late while some are so scared of the next day that they just don’t close their eyes due to the fear of losing the present day.
In between the hectic start and the frantic end something very important is found – The future, and during the process something more important is lost – The present.
We plan for the distant future that no one in this world can guarantee of seeing. We don’t even know if we will pass the next moment alive and we try to shape something that is years and years away.
Everyone has a dream or dreams rather. For the working class, it is mainly about owning a perfect house, a big car, a bank full of money and a relaxed, peaceful, and happy life. We define the life we want in terms of countless materialistic things without even bothering about the loopholes in the foundations of those dreams.
We work hard for a big house but do not give enough time today to the family that will make that house a home.
We dream of breathing the fresh morning air in the lawn outside our future house while coping with the work load by smoking cigarettes which will leave our lungs not worthy of being able to even breathe properly.
We work non stop so that we can be independent even at old age and stand tall but forget that sitting on that work table for hours and days will leave no strength in our bones to even manage a healthy morning walk in the future.
We turn our life upside down and stretch ourselves to the limit of mental exhaustion to keep the dream of relaxing someday in the future.
We forget ourselves to make our future memorable and little do we realise that we are making no memories at all to be cherished in the future.
We forget the night and day and keep staring at the laptop because we want to see our future shining but what we don’t understand is that the screen will probably suck the vision out of our eyes to the extent that we might not be able to even tell the difference between day and night.
Have we ever stopped and tried to figure out what are we actually running after? We are trying to find a life at the horizon while life is with us at the moment looking at us confusingly and wondering what are we looking at towards the horizon.
This is our life and not a date tree where one generation sows the seeds while the third generation gets to harvest the fruits. I do not mean to say that we should spend every penny on having fun and not save anything but i really believe that the best time to fulfill your dreams is the present.
People go months without their favorite food to get in shape that is good enough to be able to have that exact favorite food. It is so common nowadays to hear things like: I love pizza but it makes me fat so I am on a diet which will help me lose weight and once I get sleek and slim I will enjoy my favorite pizza. This is plain ridiculous if not anything else. The pizza is right there in front of you and you will wait for months to have that. What if your taste changes? Maybe you don’t feel like having a pizza six months down the line so you basically missed your pizza when you loved it. Enjoy the present and prepare for the future as well. Have your slice and workout extra that day and you have it solved. Balance is the key.
The harder you try to make a brighter future, the more are the chances of it getting darker as overload will lead to excess stress which in turn will churn out various types of health issues which obviously will not make for a shining time in the future.
Take time out for your family and friends because your work organization looks after you only in the working hours but your loved ones will be there for you till the last hour and with them, the journey towards the end will have the crackles of laughter, tears of joy and a lifetime experience of the time of your life.
Take time out for yourself. Keep your mind and body fit and in shape because these are the fuels that take you across the hurdles of time. Follow your passion, play a sport, travel because when the life will flash out in front of your eyes for that one final time, these are the scenes which will give you the most happiness and they will take away your stress as well, as an added bonus.
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Stop, take a step back, breathe, cease the moment and then move forward. This way each step would be a fresher and a happier step towards your aim. God has created this world big enough for everyone to explore not just outside but inside as well so get out of that cubicle and take some time away before the time takes you away.