30,000 Days

I'm obsessed! Well maybe just hyper aware... There is a difference... right?
My frequent cruises up to Los Angeles can involve any number of things. Most often it is the beginning of the weekend and I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends. There might be some mission to accomplish, like babysitting, taking Mom shopping, a theatre event that only shiny LA can offer.

The trek never seems too long because I am addicted to books on tape and my XM radio.
Last weekend's jaunt was no exception. My mission: Visit Mom and then accompany my Sister to a pseudo Superbowl party. We were only going because this party boasted several very large HD televisions, and Prince was the halftime entertainment. We weren't disappointed. Those 8 minutes of the Purple One in high definition, was well worth it.

On the way home Sunday evening, I pushed the XM button and clicked over to 156... Oprah and Friends. Even I couldn't stand the schmaltzy dialog during whatever "friend" was on at the moment, so I switched to NPR and caught a conversation in progress on the importance of being aware of how we spend our time. Understanding the importance of gratitude. Living in the present and not lingering in the past. (Okay, this may have been kind of schmaltzy too)..

"If you live to be 80 years old, how many days do you think you get?" asked the commentator. 400,000! replied one person...another said 60,000. 30,000 days was the answer. Actually it is really around 29,200.. but it is nice to round up, particularly in with this equation. 30,000 days is not a lot of days to have... in fact, it seems like a really small number. Now wonder we all have a feeling that time is flying..because it is and there is not alot of it.

So how you are spending it becomes the important question. It is like a bank account on those long months when you might cut things close paying your bills. You know how much money you have and what you need to give away... you are focused on meeting your obligations and reserving funds for other needs/wants/desires. Why aren't we so good at managing our time? Not to be more productive at work and make those endless meetings. But how we spend it. What we focus on...

The notion of 30,000 days is helping me realize how often I might allow other people to affect my mood and my outlook. Awareness is good. I choose, and when I can't choose, I determine my response. Focus on making the most of each of however many days I might have.