I sit here on the first day of the year, musing on the past, present and future. I come to one conclusion: Life is too short!

As the years go by, I see that one can work hard for money and possessions, but cannot earn the years to enjoy them. I conclude: Life is a gift!

I watch the parade of time, events, seasons, changes and people. I note the increase of depression, suicide, murder, abortion, death and I decide: Life is a choice!

Life is a gift, so don’t squander it. To each one is given an endowment of seconds, minutes, days and years. It may be large or small, nevertheless it is a trust. Be thankful for your inheritance. Rejoice in it. Enjoy it. Invest it and in it. Make it mean something, a thing of beauty and worth, for yourself and others. Don’t waste time, energy and resources given to you by hankering after those that are not given to you.

Life is a choice, to be lived or not, to exist or not, to enjoy or just pass time. Live fully everyday for the next may not be yours. Life is not a bed of roses, for sure as there is a waxing and a waning, day and night, gain and loss. Remember flowers bloom at night as well as in the day. Tides do ebb and flow. There is a beauty in darkness as well as in light. Learn to enjoy every season by adapting yourself its demands. Life is a dynamic flow and never a static stillness. You either resist and wear yourself out or move with it and be transformed. Choose to live.

Life is too short to be wasted with regretting your actions and reactions. Keep short accounts and don’t build up long lists by letting the sun go down on anger. It’s healthier to love and forgive than to bear grudge and become bitter. King Solomon the Wise said that a merry heart is like a medicine but a broken spirit dries the bones. So strengthen yourself with love, laughter and life. Don’t become old too quickly by being rigid and stiff, but maintain youthfulness by being flexible and pliant.

Above all, let’s not waste life by neglecting or misusing people, for their life too is short. Before you know, people are gone from this world, passed on to a place of no return. The most precious yet the most ignored entity and resource on planet earth is humankind. Each single person is an unique individual whose loss leaves a vacuum that nothing can ever fill or compensate. Don’t be hasty to cast off or throw aside people for they are not disposables. We grieve and lament when someone has moved on, but won’t it be better if we learnt to appreciate and value when they are still with us!

Let’s choose to live life to the fullest, this new year, with health and strength, as much as possible with no regrets whatsoever!

*Thanks to @theycallmetanj for making this photo available freely on @unsplash 🎁 https://unsplash.com/photos/QBknAHMdbz8