Have you ever had a turning point moment in your life? You know, the kind where you come to the realization that there’s something you need to start doing differently in your life?
My turning point hit me today. It should have hit me a couple of days before. Or years. But it made sense today. A couple of hours before I posted this piece. Just this morning, on my short walk to the office; it hit me.
So, in the last 3 days, 2 people I know died; Last breath, never to be seen again, DIED.
They were great people. People who made an impact on my life and a lot of other people in the most remarkable way. People who lived a life of Love and Kindness. Pure undiluted kindness.
I saw a movie yesterday, “Five Feet Apart’. For maybe the first time since ‘My Name Is Khan’, I cried for a long time after watching a movie. Before that, I paused the movie a lot to look for extra tissue paper and called a friend to vent after a number of scenes. Basically, my emotions were on edge throughout the duration.
The Central theme of the movie made so much sense to me. I felt like I could identify with Stella’s life; Trying all I can to meet a certain target I’ve set without actually taking the time to enjoy the moments I have to live. I think the parts of the movie that struck me the most were 1) After Poe Died and she got really upset that she never got to hug her best friend while he was alive, and 2) When she wanted to see the lights and she said to Will ‘All the while I’ve been living for my treatments instead of doing my treatments so that I can live’.
All my life, I’ve randomly mentioned to my friends and family the things I would love to do in my lifetime. I believe that a lot of you reading this have a million things on your bucket list, but like me are so focused on attaining the things that life has imposed on us that we have forgotten to live for the things that matter to us.
I stopped writing for a couple of months now because of work stress and pressure. I have over 20 content drafts saved on my laptop, and those are even for the pieces that I’ve written more than halfway. I’ve been so focused on gaining experience in my career that I suppressed the one thing that really meant a lot to me in the process. Today I’ve come to the realization that there’s a difference between empty fatigue and gratifying exhaustion, and I think I’d rather be stressed over the thing that matters most to me.
Sharing my stories has always been an important thing for me. It has always meant a lot to me to put out my content and share my life with people, with the hope that it strikes a chord in them to do something differently for a better outcome. After I saw the movie, I asked myself if I was going to be proud of myself if I died today. It was a tough question to answer.
There are a lot of things I’ve planned to do over the course of my life that I’ve done nothing about, mostly out of the fear of things not working out as I expect them to. But can anyone ever be so sure about the future?
For the sake of this new phase of my life, I promise myself to live my life the best way I can. Starting today, I’m editing my bucket list to comprise the things that really matter to me and I’m making reasonable effort towards achieving them. I promise to live a great life and live for the things and the people who matter. I promise to make my moments count.
I wrote this piece to remind you that life is so fickle and it could end at any point. Life has an expiry date that we do not know of. Take advantage of the days you have left.
Take that risk. Forgive that person. Love the people who ‘don’t deserve it’ by your standards. Be kind while there is still time. Leave no lovely words unsaid. Be the rainbow in someone’s cloud. Love deeply.
Make great memories with the people that matter to you. Collect beautiful moments. Do the things you’ve always wanted. Inspire the people around you. Live a great life. Let your life count.
Start today. Sometimes Life doesn’t wait till tomorrow.
Olufolake❤️ 
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