We live in this world. It is huge. It is varied. And on it are all these people who aren’t me. And, not being me, they all think in slightly (or not-so-slightly) different ways from me. And, thinking in slightly different ways from me, they come up with ideas for things I never would have come up with on my own. But sometimes I read about these things or I hear about these things and I get really inspired to do these things or to learn about these things, because so many of the things are just so amazing! And who doesn’t want to be a part of something amazing?
I was over reading on Truth and Cake the other day and she’d been to see this speaker, Elie Weisel, who I’m sure I should have heard of, but hadn’t, and one of the things he said that’s been sticking in my head and that pretty much blows me away is, “Do something remarkable with every moment.” Every moment!? Seriously? Can you imagine the lives we’d live if we did this? The world we’d live in if everyone did this? I work hard to do something remarkable once a week; it takes willpower, and even then, “remarkable” is probably a word that only I might use for a lot of the stuff I do. But every moment. I don’t even know what that would look like.
But oh, I’d love to try. I know it makes me greedy, but I want remarkable. I’m not asking to be given it. I’m not sure it’s the kind of thing you can be given, anyway. I believe in work and I believe that working hard on something makes it more rewarding and more valuable. Life is so short, and so long, and to live it without trying to make the whole thing — every moment — remarkable means wasting so much opportunity, so much possibility. But how easy it is to waste time. How many moments of my life have I frittered away on essentially nothing?
And there aren’t really any excuses. I am so, so lucky. I have a love that feeds my soul every day. My whole life I’ve had the support of a mother who would (who has, who does) move mountains for me, and the support of the network she built me of aunties and honorary aunties who help her do it. I have food. I have a home that gives me peace when I’m in it. I have enough money. Not lots, but yeah, enough. Is there anything else I could need? Is there any excuse I could come up with for not leading the remarkable life that I know I owe back to the world for giving me so many gifts?
Oh.
In my head, this was going to be one of my fluff posts: a list of some cool stuff I saw on pinterest that I’d like to do if I can find the time. In writing an introduction to it, my “to do” list just got a bit more grand. But then, I think the little projects count too.
Because yes. I want to leave the world a better place than I found it. I have no idea how, but that is one of my goals. I want to make a meaningful difference – a positive one – in someone’s life. Hopefully a lot of someones. I want to have a pride that has been irrefutably earned. Those are the big remarkables I want to work on. But I also just want to make people smile.
And I also want a life, that when I am old, will be remarkable to remember. Not just in big things, but in little things.
Maybe it’s selfish, but I want to see things and do things and travel places. I want to volunteer. I want to learn things. I want to laugh more. I want to make new friends. Not facebook-type friends — not acquaintances. I’m looking for the types of connections that nourish and grow a person. I have some, and they are wonderful, but I also know there must be more of my “soul mates” (that term makes me a little pukey, but I can’t think of a better one at the moment for those people you just click so well with) out there and I really want to meet them. (I don’t know when or why it became so hard to make new friends, but it makes me sad, and I feel like I need to change something to fix this. I’m still not sure what or how though.) I want to enrich the friendships I already have. I want to find quietness in my mind. I want to make peace with my body. I want to take myself less seriously and remember to lighten up and have fun. I want to make beautiful things with my hands. I want to join this band, because it looks freaking awesome.
We’ll see how I go. Every moment might be a little ambitious a target, but if I do all the things on that list, that might just be good enough to earn my remarkable life.
My One Precious Life 
Oh, how I hear you.
I think sometimes what I need is just someone to say, yes, as far as life goes, you are doing it right.
It would be nice if someone objective would give us little report cards or performance reviews or something, so we could see where we were good, satisfactory, or needing improvement.
Or maybe that would be too depressing for words. I don’t know.