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4 I The Best Online Education System in the world
CARPE DIEM 2
Kathlyn Q. Barrozo
Class of 1991, University of Santo Tomas
B.S. Medical Technology
Have you ever been advised to live each day like it was the last day of your life? Personally, this writer has taken
that advice to heart, knowing and fearful that this day or the next could be the last day of her life. Short of
getting morbid here, this writer does not feel death is near, mind you. But for this writer, that fact has never
been more significant than any other because of the circumstances I have found myself in, among other
considerations.
For one, I was widowed early at 37. That’s when I realized that nothing is ever certain in this life—oh, except
death and taxes of course. One moment you’re on top of the world, the next moment you’re down in the
dumps, absolutely. Before you know what hit you, you find yourself down on the ground with only your dignity
intact and the responsibilities you have to face staring right back at you. The ride can be scarier than any
amusement park offering, you see. But I often realize how truly strong we become when the going gets real
tough, and it helps that people believe in you and ceaselessly find ways to support you as much as they can.
Life is a roller coaster ride, and it seems like time is always on our side. But reality bites, like I once said, and it
does bite long and hard. We are not indestructible; neither are we untouchable. The fact of the matter is, we
are not immune to the complexities and challenges of life, and it is only time that can heal all wounds and that
will help us grow with each step we take, with each decision we make. This is precisely why we need to learn as
much as we can and wise up in the ways of this world. Otherwise, time will seem to imprison us in its
unforgiving clutches when we end up doing the same mistakes over and over again, which will lead us to
question ourselves even more. We will never know the sweetness of success that way.
Being young is an easy time to learn our perspectives, grab the opportunities that come our way. The youth
have time on their hands which their elders often do not have. They are given every option to explore and
discover as much as they can, in direct contrast to their elders who can only sigh in desperation and
disappointment for misused options and wrong decisions. Such is the cruelty of age; such is the wickedness of
time.
Time well-spent is time saved. It is a matter of knowing how it should be spent before one can actually enjoy
the benefits of truly having time on our hands. Time is a gift we all have, but unfortunately do not often have
the luxury of knowing how to use.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:
1.
Why should we “seize the day”?
2.
Was there ever a time you did something you regretted right after? What were the circumstances
surrounding that particular situation?
3.
Do you always feel that you have time on your hands? Why or why not?
4.
If you could change one particular event in history, what would that event be? Why would you wish to
change it?
5.
Do you consider other people’s time as important as your own? Why or why not?