That Singular Moment

That singular moment  ~ when you said “Yes!” instead of “No.”

When you turned left instead of right ~

When you chose to leave the table instead of waiting. He still may return…

When you acted on a hunch, and it was right and you WON!

When you thought to say ‘goodbye’ because you didn’t know if you could say ‘hello’ ever again…

When someone said, “Give them a call, you never know…” and you did. Or you didn’t. The opportunity, another like so many, gone with the wind…

When your phone mistakens Saarbrucken for West Hollywood and you think, Fun! this may never happen again, so you capture it. Or you capture the magical 3:33 at exactly that time.

You looked into the eye of a hibiscus and thought, gorgeous! How could anything be more gorgeous! And you stop on your walk to photograph it. It only takes a second.

 

All singular moments.

I am the Queen of Procrastinating away singular moments. Or getting up before the time is right. I have also said YES and had tremendously marvelous adventures too. I am not a total loser in that sense, but if I thought how many times I could have…

But I can’t.

What if I had waited to speak to Daniel Day-Lewis when he returned to the bar at the Four Seasons the day after he won his Academy Award for “My Left Foot”? What if I had actually written that screenplay for Anthony Perkins I always said I would. Before he died. And another friend…What if I had sent that email that I said I should? Now he is gone too….

“We can’t vainly regret what has already past…” My darling friend Alecia wrote this to me on a card when we were in high school. I have kept it on my various Frigidaires ever since. A daily reminder. Act NOW or forever hold your peace.

So may times I have said, “No…just forget it…” But why? Fear? Afraid of the glory that could come? The outcome I don’t know and could never predict but use as an excuse to…

What if I had fought for something I chose to give up on?

How many times a day are we plagued with thoughts like this? Perhaps not in total regret, but definitely reminders of how fleeting singular moments are. Moments that define or shape our existence in some way. Sometimes we make the exact right choice, and it is exhilarating! Each of these singular moments, alter our destinies forever.

I have many defining moments when I chose to say YES! and thereby set my life on a course of glorious adventure as well. I know I am exactly where I am supposed to be. God and Goddess have a plan for me.

They will nudge me and you and gift us with moments to choose. How we choose to take that moment and do with what we will, is up to us.

I look at life as a hike up a Los Angeles canyon. There are many routes in Runyon ~ ‘the road’ ~ ‘hard’~ or ‘the hill’ ~ all ultimately lead to Mulholland Drive, but which one will you take? The adventure will be different, but eventually, if you keep on it, you will get to the same locale. You choose your route to arrive at your destination.

I’m thinking about this today. Every moment of our lives we make a decision. What will that decision be? What will be my perspective on it once it’s made? Can I own it and be proud? Or will I panic and think, ‘there I go again!’

Embrace. Reflect. Decide. Do. Be. Fly. That singular moment may be defining. How you respond will be the key. Now turn it.