Jun 9, 2021
The Clock in the Attic
How Many Days in 40 Years?
The Dinner Party
A pleasant dinner shared among close friends took a strange turn. During our meal, one lady started choking. Her husband ran to her aid, followed by another friend. Fifteen minutes later and no success. The obstruction in her throat was not coming free! An ambulance was called, but before arrival, the food finally dislodged itself. She was going to be okay. During that ghastly ordeal, I knew I wasn’t the only one at the table who realized life could end just that suddenly and in such a casual and inglorious manner.
How many days in 40 years?
Take a guess. How long do we have left on earth before our ability to create a new or better existence is taken out of our hands? Our precious gift of life cannot be replenished.
- 10 years = 3,650 days
- 20 years = 7,300 days
- 30 years = 10,950 days
- 40 years = 14,600 days
I agonize over these numbers — they rattle me. It reminds me that the clock is ticking, and I shouldn’t waste another single moment! What is on my bucket list that I have not done? What is my plan for accomplishing most or all of them?
That Vexatious Clock
The thought of my tormentor ticking down the minutes of my life is terrifying! As Dorian Grey once did, I would hide this plague upon my soul in the attic and race down the stairs like Satan himself was chasing me. I would plunge into life with the enthusiasm of a whirling dervish — fearlessly and fully! My spirit would take wing across the earth: soaking up knowledge, discovering intriguing destinations, appreciating music and art, and through it all, participating with laughter and joy.
Reprieve
But unlike Dorian, minutes before the midnight of my life, I would drag my exhausted body up those stairs for the last time, my ears becoming aware of the relentless tick tock tick tock growing louder. Drawing back the sheet covering that scourge clock, I would instead reveal a mirror reflecting the diminutive, wrinkled face of an old woman looking back at me. Recognizing the face as my own, I would smile and nod. As my reflection slowly fades, I proclaim YES, yours was a life well-lived!
If there was an enormous clock on the wall counting down the years of our lives, minute by excruciating minute, would we do more? Travel more? Love more? Give back more? Would we stop wasting time agonizing over trivial crap and start enjoying all the moments of our lives? Would we thumb our noses at the naysayers and allow life into our hearts and declare, “Why not now?”
Feel free to follow me on my journey of eternal youth! College student, travel consultant, blogger, aspiring author, and entrepreneur, all after my 50th birthday. Aging, oh, so slowly and living life on my terms — fearless, exciting, and eclectic. You can visit me at my websites wendyrichards.ca and FortunateFewTravel.ca.
