A long life and a meaningful life are not automatically the same thing.

STILLNESS

WHAT THIS MEANS

Duration and meaning are separate measures, and it is possible to have a great deal of one and little of the other. This is worth saying gently, because how long anyone gets is largely not up to them. What is partly up to you is what fills it: the relationships, the work you cared about, the things you actually did rather than intended. Length is not the variable you control.

Ask what makes a period of your life feel worth having lived, and look for what those times had in common. Then arrange for a little more of that. It is usually simpler and less impressive than expected.

A QUESTION TO SIT WITH

What would make your year meaningful rather than merely long?

MORE IN TIME, MORTALITY & LEGACY

Free, with nothing to buy inside it.