Last Monday I had a sumptuous breakfast at the Shangrila Hotel, in Mactan, Philippines, courtesy of my daughter and son-in-law who had an overnight stay there and invited me to join them the following day.
It was one great breakfast worth writing about: It started with a glass of ice-cold, freshly squeezed orange juice under the hotel's palm-tree covered patio, then two large fried eggs, a few strips of bacon, and serving of corned beef, two slices of toasted wheat bread, a serving of mixed fruits, with a cup of warm, native black chocolate to go with it.
To aid my digestive process, I went for my favorite aquatic activity right after - snorkeling. What made it different this time was that I snorkeled in the hotel's marine sanctuary.
For the good of 20 minutes, I swam with tropical fishes of different colors, species, shapes and sizes. It was practically a kaleidoscope of living colors swirling all around me. They are so used to swimming with people that you can almost touch them; some had the audacity to nibble the calluses off my fingers.
After what seemed a lifetime of frolicking with marine life, I threw my flippers and snorkel on the beach and free-styled for two laps along the entire length of the sanctuary.
Later, as I sat on the white, powdery sand in the midst of opulent tranquility, and facing the dark blue seas, I fought the temptation of calling it "living life to the fullest."
I was happy, very happy in fact, on that fine and wonderful morning. But I knew that it was all temporary; I knew that had my daughter and her hubby not invited me over, I would never have had the chance of tasting a slice of a life of abundance.
I knew that when I drive out of the gates of the hotel, the environment, the breakfast, the snorkeling and the swim would all memorable experiences, soon to be buried beneath other experiences of the coming days.
It was nice, it was good; in fact it was awesome. But it was not "living life to the fullest." Living life to the fullest is made up of little pleasures that give our lives an even keel, a balance and meaning. It is not of temporary spurts of joy but of much longer sense of serenity and peace of mind.
Living life to the fullest is:
1. Appreciating the little things that come our way:
From the time we wake up in the morning until we sleep at night, our world is full of tiny little things that can make our hearts sing with joy - if only we take the time to notice them.
From the innocent look of your sleeping child, to the sweet aroma of the coffee your wife is brewing in the kitchen. It is to see the beauty of the flowers in your garden, and the butterflies that effortlessly flit from one to the other; it is to hear the hearty "good morning" greeting of a neighbor, or the soft rays of sunshine that caress your skin as you pick up you early morning paper.
Many more will come your way the entire day but these will large go unnoticed because our brains are naturally wired to see the curses, not the blessings in life.
2. Being realistic:
Living life to the fullest is to know yourself, your abilities and your talents, and what you are capable of. It is setting goals that make you sweat a little bit, make you push yourself a little higher than where you are now.
Maybe you need to bite more than you can chew, just make sure you won't choke to death. It is breaking the barriers you previously set for yourself and enjoying every minute of it.
3. It is letting go of the past:
Whatever you do, the past is past and nothing can bring it back. Rather than pine or be sorry for it, be thankful for the lessons you learned. Let it be the launch pad from you set yourself off to explore new territories, new heights.
Learn from it. Life is a constant process of learning, of evolving, of becoming a little bit better - inch by inch.
4. Not being obsessed with material things:
This is going to be a real challenge in this very materialistic world. It is going to take a herculean effort to go for what we need, not what we want; to desire, not to covet.
There is totally nothing wrong with materialism for practical reason, not to clutter our homes with things we really don't need.
You can only wear a pair of shoes or pants at a time. Why drive yourself crazy in wanting to have a closet-full of them?
Living life to the fullest is not of excesses but of simplicity. Happiness is not about what you have, but of what you are doing with them.
5. It is being friendly:
Several weeks ago, I received an email about motivational things which, I am sure, clutter your Inbox as well. It says,
"Send a silent praise to every person you meet today. Wish them well. Send a wave of blessings to every person you talk to and see what happens."
Pretty cool, isn't it?
6. Listening to your heart and soul:
This is called "mindfulness," the latest craze in finding oneself.
Set aside a certain time of the day to listen to your heart and soul. For 10 minutes or so, shut yourself out from the world and focus on that tiny voice, your inner self, and listen to what it is trying to tell you.
Various researches show that your heart and soul are always trying to communicate with you and they are seldom wrong.
This exercise can be the most beneficial thing you do in any given day.
7. Paying back:
We don't live in a vacuum. Each of us is connected to a community which shaped our thoughts, feelings, desires, and the choices we make. Our community helped us grow and become what we are today.
It is only proper to pay it back one way or the other, in any way you can. Not only is it an obligation, it will also make you a better person.
Studies show that unconditional generosity gives the highest form of happiness to the giver.
8. Never to give up:
Living life to the fullest is seeing things through, no matter how difficult or challenging they may be.
We all face obstacles every day. While some can be avoided or skirted around, some have to be faced head on. How you handle them is a test of your character. Will you run away or stand up and fight? Will you buckle down in surrender or stand up fighting to the last of your strength?
Life is replete with examples of ordinary men who gained fame by pursuing dreams deemed impossible by others. The prevailed because they did not give up.
The reason why the world is full of losers is not because they lacked the opportunity or the talent; it is not because they lacked the intelligence or the connections to push them up.
They failed because they gave up.
9. It is being happy:
Living life to the fullest is, first and foremost, being happy. Maybe not euphoric happy or wear a perpetual grin on your face.
Being happy is none of those. It is to have a deep feeling of satisfaction, not contentment, mind you, of not having so many hang-ups a lot of people do that rob them of their peace of mind, their self-confidence and the motivation to achieve their purpose in life.
Living life to the fullest is to live in constant expectation that no matter how bad things are today, the sunshine of the coming day will bring with it the hope that things will be a lot better; that no matter how bad your fall may be, you can still bounce back and do it all over again.
I believe that we all must strive to live life to the fullest. I believe that we all have the inherent ability to stretch our lives as far as it can be stretched, to go as far as our imagination can take us, and to dream dreams that can spur us to achieve what we once thought unachievable.
That even if we failed, it does not carry with the remorse and despondence failures always bring, but a smile on our face knowing that we have given it our best shot.
Joseph Dabon
I am a freelance writer and blogger. I write about a wide range of subjects,.e.g., self-development, health and fitness, success and happiness and elderly issues, http://elderlytalk.com/.
I am also an SEO content writer and copywriter and a website optimizer.
Email me at dabon.joseph@gmail.com or Skype me at joesfortune should you need some help in your writing.
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