Am I wasting time? Am I wasting time at this job that does not serve me? Am I wasting time complaining about things I cannot control? Am I wasting time on people who do not respect me rather than my loved ones? Am I wasting time not loving enough? Looking back on my four years of high school, my only regret was not living my life to the fullest. — Payton Baughman (12)
The vast majority of humans will lead a similar life in some capacity. Likely, they will go through the 12 years of primary education, possibly attend post-graduate education, get a job, and work until they are anywhere from 45-80. Of course, this depends on many factors, but it is the reality of many people, specifically in the United States. While this may appeal to some people, it begs the question: Is this my purpose? Was I made to work? What is my spark? How do I impact the world?
There is no clear answer despite the desire to understand the impossible. So, what is a human’s purpose? While the answer to this question is unknown, all humans can do in the meantime is seize the day…carpe diem.
Carpe diem means to urge someone to make the most of the present time and give little thought to the future. It is the one thing in life that we have control over. We cannot control circumstances or others, but we can control how we react to them. Seizing the day does not necessarily mean always being happy with our circumstances personally; it is allowing yourself to feel every emotion you feel genuinely. It means living the human experience to the highest potential. A line from the movie Soul sticks out to me. The main character, Joe, is asked how he will spend his life, and he states, “I’m not sure, but I do know, I’m going to live every minute of it.” The depth behind the line in a children’s movie goes way beyond expectation, as it makes the viewer think about the use of their own life. Senior at YLHS, Payton Baughman (12) notes, “Looking back on my four years of high school, my only regret was not living my life to the fullest.”
This is not to say that we must quit our jobs to become pop stars; we still must live in reality, but it does not hurt to dream. Seizing the day is making the most out of it. We have a limited amount of years on this earth, so how can we use it wisely? Go tell people you love them, do what you love, follow your heart, and be kind to every stranger you see.
