When the natural rhythm of life is disturbed by acts of violence, terrorism or forces of nature, the humanity in us wakes up. We feel for the victims, we weep for them, we may even say a prayer for them. At the same time, the tragedy is a wake up call for our tendency to procrastinate living fully.
The Boston explosion
On Monday, the 15th of April, the marathon runners in Boston were the victims of two bomb explosions, which took place in the proximity of the finish line.
Three people were killed and more than 100 injured, as New York Times reports.
The breaking news gave chills down on my spine. I avoided seeing images from the carnage. It was hard enough to read the report.
Pretend you were there in the midst of the smoke and panic
Imagine being one of the marathon runners. You happily participate in the annual event that is supposed to be a celebration of the Spring when you get caught in the middle of a blast.
Suddenly the only thing that matters is survival.
You may have been in a relationship where you felt you couldn’t get too involved. Or, you were waiting for the other one to commit.
You may have been eagerly waiting for the newly appointed manager, who as the rumours has it, has better people skills than the former.
You may have been trying to have a baby.
You may have been excited to get to pension so that you can finally do whatever you want with your time.
Then, the explosion comes from a garbage can and changes your life for ever. Ready or not, you need to cope with the consequences. Maybe you lost one leg.
Why are we waiting?
For those of us who only read or heard on the news about it, the Boston explosion should make us reflect upon what is going on in our lives at the moment. Hopefully, most of us will realise that our life is great just the way it is.
Yet, some of us may want to start working on the list of pending personal projects.
Do we want to … start writing a diary?
… renovate the kitchen?
… lose weight?
… travel to a remote destination?
… learn how to tango?
… study for an MBA?
… find the soulmate?
Then, what are we waiting for? What holds us back to take action?
Is it that we are afraid of the unknown? Of what the loved ones might say? Or of failure?
Are we waiting for the right time and place? What does that mean anyway?
It is true that when it comes to big life changing events, such as finding the soulmate, it is not quite up to us. There is the will of the Universe, which decides the right place and time when it happens.
But this does not mean that meanwhile we can just stare at the moon each night, sighing with longing.
We need to go out there and look for the right one, for example, at the gym or while walking the dog.
The Boston bombing is yet another tragic illustration that our life ends in the split of a second.
Most of us are not ready for that second, but when it does come, the least we can do is to have no regrets.
How about you? How many times in your life did you feel that you are not YET ready to make small or big changes? Did you take any actions eventually and what made you do that?