One of the great things about life is that it will, undoubtably, happen. The sun will rise, and I will have some kind of day. Some of those days will be good, and others will be painfully difficult. Realizing that life will carry on, and that the "with or without me" thing is metaphorical (and not quite true) has dramatically changed my outlook on life. After all, my life will always continue with me. I don't have a choice on that; I simply have a choice about being passive. If time is a river, I can be a stick or a swimmer.

I've been keeping this baby-philosophy at the front of my mind as I pack up my room and get ready for my last semester of undergraduate studies. Tomorrow will happen with or without my permission, and with or without my participation in any active sense. However, I am always on-screen in my own life. It will happen, and I will be there, alive for as many days as I have. As a Christian, I also believe that life will continue off earth, which means it is all the more crucial to take advantage of the time I have - the timeless next step is going to be a whole new ballgame. I'm not telling you to go out and do something crazy. I'm reminding you that the moment you are living IS your life, whether you are living it at a dead-end job or on the date of your dreams.

If I could encourage anyone to do anything today, it would be to remember that the moment you are living is "life." You can change the appearance of your life, but the fact is, your life is happening NOW. If you aren't feeling well and wish that moment would end, it will. This is not the end-moment. If your day is marvelous and you are reading this between adventures, luxuriate in the extra-special gift that today has been. Today, I am flying back to California for college. Life is happening (no one would dispute that) but life also happened on Monday, when I took a whole day off, and on Tuesday, when I saw three people incredibly dear to me, and yesterday, when my mom had a birthday. Enjoy and take in the moments of life, and swim in the river if you aren't a fan of how things are going. You can be proactive. And, there is nothing wrong with taking a day off. That is life too. Life needs moments of up and down, swell and retreat. This is life. You are already living it.