Every man dies, but not every man truly lives.

This is my most favorite line of dialogue from the movie Braveheart. In the aphorism above, I attribute the words to William Wallace who speaks the line of dialogue in the movie.
In truth, the quotation truly goes to Randall Wallace, who wrote Braveheart. There is no historical support that William Wallace said this, but the sentiment remains. Randall Wallace is not related to William Wallace, I checked that, too.

As we get older, our life starts to appear more finite. The benefit of this is that it forces us to prioritize what is most important to us. The detriment is that it starts to really illuminate the likelihood of the things we most cherish, actually coming to fruition.

The priorities we set in life are the road markers we use to navigate as we work day after day towards some form of meaningful goals.

I think we all expect our lives to have a deeper meaning or purpose. One that creates value, gives continuous fulfillment and which leaves a legacy of merit.

Of course, the parameters by which an individual defines these variables, ultimately helps to define and thereby determine whether or not those goals are achieved.

The question of whether or not a life was well lived can be viewed both objectively and subjectively. It would probably be a good argument for whether or not one or the other of these two perspectives is appropriate in making that determination.

Given that it is an individual‘s life, I would defer to the subjective perspective. If a person feels a great sense of accomplishment at the end of their life, is it really up to anyone else to say otherwise?

But, that said, the subjective perspective is tainted by the long list of things that person really wanted to accomplish as compared to what had actually been achieved. If the person is a type A overachiever, they could very well answer that question differently than those with an objective perspective may.

Leonardo da Vinci said,” As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well spent brings happy death.” Even still, on his final days lamented, “did anything I do really matter?“

I think that if we all approach life through the filter of a trying to make every day count, look bravely into the future with a fierce determination and a devout sense of belief in one’s self, then we are perhaps arming ourselves with everything it takes to “really live.”

It is important to understand these parameters on a personal basis, for in taking the time to both define what these mean in your world, as well as project the steps that you are taking to achieve them, it gives you a greater potential for achieving them as time progresses.

I hope this is beautiful Thursday advances you one step closer to achieving your goals!🌈

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