Seize the Moment!
"...But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity's sun rise."
With these words, the English poet (and artist) William Blake, seemed to understand one's appreciation for being able to both seize and live in the moment.
Young Gabriel Felder, in his 2014 George Washington University commencement speech, somewhat immortalized The Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson yet again, by quoting him to emphasize how in each journey of life we should be aware of where we are. True, we may be just passing through current events on our way to something else, but where we are is important and we should never take the present for granted; life doesn't begin when we say it does. Gabe studied Torah with my dear friend Yudi Steiner, Rabbi at GWU, every week for the last four years.
Gabe's father had entreated him, as he began his years at college, not to waste his time; unfortunately, Gabe reported, he passed away, missing the chance to see him graduate.
Seize the moment, or as a Starbucks fan might say, "Wake up and smell the cappuchino!"
So how is it that a poet and artist from the 19th century and a coffee vendor have so many ideas in common with a beloved Rebbe?
Perhaps, going through life some of us miss out on the real joy of life by anticipating what comes next. Where are we? We are unable to focus on and appreciate what is around us, because our minds are moving on to the next event -- we are too busy anticipating. We have all done it: we are so engrossed not only by the words of a heated discussion but also in planning a clever retort to the current speaker that we miss the point of what he is saying. Where did we lose the ability to allow ourselves to be totally engrossed with the present, so anxious are we to make it the past? And at what cost?
During this Memorial Day weekend, we have an opportunity to invest our quality time with family, and what better way is there to honor all the brave men and women and their sacrifices, who have given us this gift of time?
Reach out, grab it, kiss the joy as it flies -- and stop long enough to smell that cappuchino! Seizing the moment and living fully within it is the best way to acknowledge all that is good about the past and build a solid foundation for a great, happy and prosperous future.