Seven: Carpe Diem.

Ciao.  I know I’ve been extremely unavailable over the past few weeks.  I’ve been busy, and I’m not really sorry for my absence because my social life has actually picked up…positive for me, maybe not so positive for the 5 of you who like to read this thing (and that’s including my parents).  I do have updates; however, right now I’m not going to write about them.  I need to address something more important.  Friday afternoon I was informed that a dear friend of mine was in the hospital on life support.  I’m not going to dwell on details of the situation because I don’t feel that I’m in the position to do so.  I came to Italy partly because of the experience itself and partly because I needed a break from reality.  I say this not to sound melodramatic or over exaggerated.  It’s simply the truth.  It’s been very refreshing to be in a foreign place by myself.  I haven’t really worried about anything other than my obligations and experiences here.  The feeling of somewhat escaping the norm, even if only for a few months, is incredible.  I neglected to consider the fact that just because I decided to ignore life back home doesn’t mean it still wasn’t happening.  Time stops for no one.  I’m not trying to sound like a voiceover monologue via Dawson Leery’s mouth, and I know some of you don’t know what the hell I’m talking about so I apologize for that but bear with me.  Because there was no brain activity for over 24 hours, my friend was taken off life support and was able to pass on peacefully.  For that I am very thankful.  No one, and I mean no one, deserves to suffer.  Before I conclude, however, I do have a simple request for those of you who’ve managed to read this all the way through.  I warn you that, at one point or another, you’ve probably heard this spiel before, but that doesn’t deplete its importance.  There are always a few people (or perhaps more than a few) in our lives who we take for granted—family, friends, the people who rip tickets at the movie theater…I don’t know, that’s up to you and your personal life.  It’s not that we aren’t thankful for them.  We just get caught up in everyday chaos, and we forget to tell them how great they are and that they mean something unique and wonderful to us.  I’m not even talking about love. Maybe you’re just happy to have them in your life—maybe it’s gotten just a little bit better since they came along.  Again…up to you.  My request is that you tell them, in one way or another, what they mean to you.  A phone call, an email, a “thanks for ripping my ticket”…whatever.  That’s my clichéd request.  I suppose it’s become cliché because it’s repeated so often, and in my experience things are repeated when we fail to listen the first (or second or tenth) time.  So maybe we should start catching on.  On a similar note, if it is about love…just grow a pair and say it.  Life’s too short not to.  Okay, go seize the day—today.  And to my friend, who I’m sure is in a better place…

 

Peace. Love. Happiness.