— Henry David Thoreau
I used a quote the other day from a book called “Ichigo Ichie” and several people replied asking what those words mean.
It’s a Japanese phrase that doesn’t have a perfect English translation, but basically means: What we are experiencing right now will never happen again. (“Once, a meeting” or “In this moment, an opportunity” is the exact translations for those of you who want to be exact).
It’s a philosophy of treasuring every experience, every moment and every interaction we have with others because that exact moment will never happen again.
You may visit the same place again, but you will be different because we all change. The place will be different, because all things change.
As Heraclitus said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”
If we spend our time lamenting the fact that things have changed or trying to recreate past moments then we are not focused on this current moment and it too will disappear, never to return.
As the authors write in their book, “…days are made up of encounters and moments that we can either allow to slip away or make unforgettable.”
Today, you have a choice: You can treasure as many moments and interactions as you can or let them slip away forever. Which will it be?
Win Your Day!
Steve Gilbert