I recently met a woman who left me speechless.
There’s a cafe in Santa Monica where I go for lunch frequently.
One of the servers at the cafe is a young woman in her early 20’s named Julie who is absolutely bursting with passion and enthusiasm for life.
I mean, she’s really, really happy all the time!
The way she interacts with customers, speed walks around the restaurant, Julie is absolutely beaming with joy.
So one day, I walked up to her and asked, “Julie, you seem to be an incredibly happy and positive person. What’s your secret? Why are you so happy?”
She paused for a moment, then said…
“Because life is beautiful”
I was immediately moved by the depth of what she said.
She continued,
“My mom has always been very negative. So I decided when I was young that I never wanted to be like that. I wanted to be positive. Because life is beautiful.”
Julie could easily be an unhappy, miserable person with a mom who is incessantly negative. Instead, she’s a shining example of what’s possible with a shift in mindset.
So what’s your one word?
“Life is ________”
Of course, you can say life is many things, but this one word frames your entire life experience.
For me, life is an adventure.
The word “adventure” is very powerful for me on many levels, but ultimately, it cultivates joy and excitement for life.
In life, you truly never really know what’s going to happen next.
There are so many cool places you can see, things you can do and learn, and people you can meet.
It also helps me overcome my fears and embrace the unknown.
So what’s your one word?
Leave a comment here, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Great article!
For me, life is a “mystery”. Mystery makes me enjoy the journey, makes me curious, happy, full of energy, and helps me overcome fear of death and unknown. It keeps me open minded about different things & experiences like Lucid Dreaming and makes learning anything easier!
Life is a test
One word… that’s a bit hard but the most encompassing one I can think of is:
Choice
LABYRINTH
a maze of different paths.
life is dear.
Life is a mission!
I believe God placed me here in this time of this world’s history to accomplish a special mission to positively affect the lives of others that I come in touch with. If I choose not to accept this mission my life would be a failure. That is why as I go through life I seek to enrich and affect the lives of others in such was that my meeting them brings them hope and they are better for it.
Abel, I totally agree with you. Without God, and Jesus, His Son, as our Savior, life is nothing. The Gift of life is Jesus Christ, and my mission is to serve others in this life through my counseling practice. Thank you for serving in your mission. Blessings.
Learning
Lesson
Life is a gift
A Gift
At different times of my life the word could have been different: hard, exciting, adventure, loving, etc. Now in my late 50’s it is “Life is spring”. The season itself is an opportunity to redefine each day with growth, beauty and change.”
That is an interesting insight and makes perfect sense that your word changes over time, thanks for sharing!
Surprising!
Magic
Rewarding
Recently I’ve started to trash-talk myself when my run turns into a run-walk (which is frequent during an organized 5K, but not when I’m running by myself – I just can’t do it). So from this point forward, my one word is going to be…possible!
Nice!
Giving
Life is a opportunity.
Life is a Test. Where you always need to be prepared. No matter how much you study, the test will always surprise with it’s unpredictability.
Life is HOPE!
In R.L. Stevenson’s “Treasure Island” the Doctor says “Where there’s life, there’s hope.” I’m 57 years old. In the last year, I’ve FINALLY figured out that this is TRUE, in many ways on many levels!
awesome article. Still thinking of my word but I’ll steal adventure. Its a solid fit
Hey Marc, Nice post. Short, simple, and absolutely true. More of us need to back up studying our own little tree and see the beauty of the forest.
Today is a great day to be ALIVE! May word is alive. My mantra is “Living Life to the Fullest”. And today is a great day to be ALIVE.
I’ve experienced many losses during my 68 years. So I appreciate each moment one day at a time.
Jesus is Life!
My life will never be the same because of the transformative power of the Gospel. God loved me first and showed me grace and now I am free to love God back and to love other people!
God the Father sent Jesus, God’s Word made manifest in human form, who humbled himself to the point of death, even death on a cross (like a criminal), so that we may be forgiven our transgressions/evil/wrongdoing/”sin”. Three days later, Jesus was raised from the dead and now sits on the right hand of God the Father. He is light and life for all those who believe in Him. We have His Word, which is the Bible, and the Holy Spirit which work together so we may know the heart of God and His ways and be conformed into the likeness of Jesus (e.g. loving, faithful, hopeful, gracious, good, righteous, etc).
There are wicked people who take on the name of “Christian” and say they love God but hate their “brother.” The Bible tells us these people are liars and do not have the love of God in them.
Practically, my passion for God and overwhelming gratitude for what He has done drives me to obediently carry out the good works that He has already prepared for me to walk in and His selfless act of sacrificial love poured out for my good enables me to selflessly and sacrificially love for the good of others.
Hope this is helpful for someone!
life is…short – maximize it for the kingdom of God, eternity is a long time. You can maximize it for life or death.
Life is Precious
I’ve let Jesus pretty much lead the way. I’m astonished with the way He works.
a journey