Carpe Diem

This week the topics have been centered around taking advantage of opportunities that are presented to us on a daily basis. What we do with those opportunities are up to us, but we have to act. Today's focus will be on precisely that - acting when the time comes.

Many motivational speakers of today will use the Latin phrase "Carpe Diem" which means to "seize the day". It was first used by the Roman lyric poet Horace (65 BC - 8BC) in the grammatic sense of "enjoy, make use of, seize." The general definition of carpe is "pick, pluck, pluck off, gather" as in plucking or picking a rose or apple. The Latin word for day is diem.

The most common interpretation of the phrase places emphasis on making the most of current opportunities because life is short and time is fleeting. It is a phrase often used in literature and movies. In Shakespeare's Hamlet (act V scene ii), Hamlet observes that "There's a divinity that shapes our ends," and says a few words about how fate is inescapable. He concludes that "the readiness is all." In other words, a person should act now, or seize the moment, whether it seems favorable or not. As Horace says, we should not subject ourselves to augury (wait for an omen or sign to foreshadow a future event). "Carpe diem! Seize the day, boys! Make your lives extraordinary!" was used in the hit movie Dead Poets Society, a film that explores the idea of carpe diem from the viewpoint of a classroom of young men at an all-boys boarding school starring Robin William in 1989. The phrase also appears, although less prominently, in a number of other movies, such as Clueless, Torque, and Roxanne.

Too often when opportunities present themselves, we may hesitate out of doubt or insecurity. However, many times the chance to take advantage of the opportunity disappears rather quickly, thus if we don't act in a timely manner, we lose that window of opportunity. Then, regret may set in. We reminisce about the chance saying "if only" or "I could have" or "I should have". There are a lot of "could have, would have, should have" instances in life, but dwelling on the regret only leads to disappointment and despair.

In the movie Grumpy Old Men, Jack Lemmon says, "The only regrets in life are the chances you don't take. So if you see a chance for happiness, grab onto it with both hands and to hell with the consequences."

Successful people simply take chances on calculated risks. They act when the time comes. They break out of their comfort zone to expand the possibilities of their lives. And they get rewarded for that action. They enjoy the fruits of the labor, the benefit of risks taken, the chance of a lifetime. Although I think the phrase "chance of a lifetime" is very overused and misused. There are many chances of a lifetime presented to us, although people rarely exercise them and may only do one which they later refer to as a chance of their lifetime.

This is why it is said that successful people enjoy what others can't because they do what others won't. Many times once the opportunity is lost, it never returns. You have to begin to look for the next opportunity that will present itself, but it could come from a very different perspective. So if your comfort zone is too restrictive, you will not be able to be open to other possibilities from different areas.

So what about you? Are you going to "seize the day"? How will your life be different months and years from now because of a decision you made today? Think about that.

As always, the choice is yours. Carpe Diem!

Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun — all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. Ecclesiastes 9:7-10 (NIV)

If you have comments or question, please feel free to contact me at the address below.
Email: DeltaInspire@panama-vo.com