Knowing your time is limited isn’t dark. It’s what makes the time mean anything.

A limit is what gives a choice weight. If there were endless afternoons, no particular afternoon would matter, and nothing you picked would cost you anything. Holding the fact of an ending lightly is not morbid; it is the reason an ordinary Tuesday with someone can feel like more than a Tuesday.

Let the thought make you specific rather than anxious. Ask what you want this month to contain, and say yes to one thing you would otherwise let slide. The awareness is only useful if it changes something small and real.