When school was ending I used to countdown the days: This is the last Monday of school. This is the last Tuesday of school. And then eventually it’d be the last day of school and summer was here, freedom was upon us. Now it was time for bare feet in the dew, climbing trees, fireflies, and summer camping. I did that routine for years and years until one school year, twenty years ago, I realized that this time it was the last Monday of school forever.
And then it was the last Tuesday.
And then it was over.
This past weekend marked twenty years since I finished high school, though I still feel like it’s only been a couple of years. I can clearly remember my friends, my beat-up car, Friday night football games and Tuesday night movies. I remember where my locker was, but have no idea of the combination. I can remember my favorite teachers, cutting class, and silly rituals we used to do.
Then it was odd jobs to pay for college. Chicago. A marriage, baby, divorce. There went a decade. And then back to Indiana. And then another decade. And now it’s my last Tuesday in Indiana.
So where have twenty years gone? I suppose like those days leading up to the last day of school these twenty years have slipped past an hour, a minute, a moment at a time. And that’s what life is comprised of, isn’t it? One day you’re moving a tassel right to left and the next you’re worrying about mortgages, college funds, and retirement accounts. The school of life isn’t taught in days, and weeks - just tiny slices of time, tiny moments. When I look back on my life I don’t recall 38 years - just some highlights and some headlines, some good times, some better times.
Today is my last Tuesday in Indiana.
Over the past few weeks I’ve been visiting with friends. We talked about our moments, all the good things we’ve done, and all the plans we still have for life. We talked about staying in touch, confirmed email addresses and phone numbers and then hugged goodbye. And each time I thought that this may be the last time I ever see this person. I hope not, but considering that we’ll be states and time zones apart it’s easy to understand how twenty years can disappear.
And so I’ve been pondering a new question: how can I get more moments in my life? What are the conditions that need to exist to create the moments I want to experience, that I want to remember twenty years from now? I asked how may I experience more in this school of life? How can I learn more, really live?
I’ve examined the moments I treasure the most from my life to explore what similarities and conditions exist in the moments of my life. Here are ten things I’ve learned:
- Television was not in any of my favorite memories
- Not all of the moments were joyful
- Friends and family were in many of the moments, but not all of them
- In none of my memories was I counting money
- Favorite moments often involved travel
- Sometimes I was lost in work that I enjoyed
- I was healthy in just about all my memories
- Trying new things is a common theme
- Music, art museums, and photography are prevalent
- I enjoy writing
That’s what I’ve learned about my life after 38 years. Now that I’m starting a new chapter in my life I’m taking this list with me - and I’ll continue to add to it. I’m not wasting anymore time doing things I don’t enjoy. I am done scheduling my life for mystical some days. When you think about it, life is one big school and any day could be the last Tuesday.
