As we’re all too familiar with, there are periods of time in life where our memories seem less distinct and time feels like it’s moving faster. Gaps in our mental log, as it would seem, that provide us with no measure of how we have spent our life. When we work with our heads down for too long, or get stuck in a consistent daily routine, our memory and overall enjoyment of life can suffer.
It’s a terrible feeling when someone asks us what we did over the weekend, leaving us scratching our heads and thinking, “is my life really that boring that I don’t remember what I did just a few days ago?”. The good news is no, you probably don’t live a much more mundane life than others around you—in all likelihood, you probably live a fairly average, normal life. The bad news is that this pattern of uneventful remembrance won’t go away by itself—especially considering that no one is going to break the negative cycle on our behalf.
When we allow our lives to become repetitive and the excitement we once got from an activity begins to dwindle, it’s time to make a change. I’ll bet that most of the things that consume your time and your thoughts aren’t on any sort of shortlist of activities you’d like to be doing. I know, because it’s true for me.
Of course, there’s a balance to everything in life, but perhaps one of the most important decisions we will make in life comes in choosing to spend our time in ways that we will remember fondly. At the end of the day, we’re here to enjoy life, not to defer gratification forever. Take a minute to step aside from the constant thinking and worrying, and accept the invitation to a moment of silence, for it is in our silence where we remember who we are.