These days I am fuelled by a quote from author Diane Ackerman “I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.” Read it and let it sit with you.
This is the perfect visual for an expression we hear time and again, “Live your life to the fullest.”
For me, Ackerman’s words paint the picture of a very wide and very long highway. There’s a lot of ground to cover and there’s me, chugging along in my cute little Mini Cooper (my dream car!), remembering to turn left and right as well as go straight. There aren’t any traffic lights or anything else on this highway, just the characteristic lane markings, and there is not an end in sight in any direction. In fact, in my mind’s eye, if I fast forward along the length of the road I go so far that I actually end up driving around a sphere and I loop back to where I started. The same goes for the other direction. Like I said, a lot of ground to cover!
Understanding what she means by living the length of one’s life is pretty easy.
What does living the WIDTH of your life entail? What would YOU have to do to live the width of your life? Sit with this writing prompt, your journal and an open mind and really check in with your Self. Don’t just spew out answers based on what you feel is expected of you, or what you think someone else would want to hear you say. Don’t answer this question based on what you see as restrictions, whether financial or circumstantial. Just ask your Self this question and hear the answer. Write down what you hear.
If you want to share, your comments are always welcome.
