Seeing RENT again reminded me of a lot of things I had
since put in the back of my mind.
“Another Day” is one of those songs that the ending is
powerful to me. Although I don’t agree with the scene itself, the message she
tries to give him is heartfelt and inspiring.
“There is no future, there is no past, I live this moment,
as my last.
There’s only us, there’s only this, Forget
regret, or life is yours to miss.
No other road, No other way, No day
but today”
Jonathan Larson wrote this musical based
on his life, the lives of his friends and how important each day of every year
was. After months in small theaters,
RENT finally hit Broadway. Only the creator of such wonderful, meaningful songs
would not be there to see his success. He died suddenly days before the
Broadway opening.
“Five hundred twenty-five thousand
six hundred minutes, how do you measure, measure a year?”
A year, Man a lot can change in a year. I scan the memory banks of my brain and think
of the years I have lived in the way I have done. The moments I lived to the fullest and the
moments I missed, we all do that.
Although no one likes to admit regrets, we all have a few we wish we had
a do over for.
“No day but today”
How often do we realize the things
and people we take for granted? I try not to, but it happens.
Be it with friends, family, lovers, and
pets or even running water, we often take those things completely for granted. I
know in my travels, seeing sunset lit hills and low laying clouds, to old
buildings from 100 years ago or wide open fields with windmills. How beautiful
some cities are to me but knowing most of the people living there take it for
granted, they see it every day.
It’s like life becomes so routine we
just forget to take some time and appreciate what we have.
We go through the motions daily and maybe
check in with ourselves to see if we think things are ok.
But if you question, did I live this
day like my last? It’s a little eye opening when you realized your routine has
left you a little empty some days. You maybe didn’t smile enough to your loved
one, or talk long enough on the phone to your parent. Maybe you went out of
your way to make something perfect and failed to appreciate yourself for doing
so.
Appreciate yourself. Weird idea isn’t it? Waiting for phrase or appreciation
from others can make you feel a little less. Not with the idea of people not appreciating
you that isn’t what I am saying, it’s wanting that instead of doing something
and thinking about who will appreciate this, it should be you.
I fail at this, I take myself for
granted. I strive to make things perfect for those in my life instead of just
enjoying the moments I have with them, not how perfect I can make a party or
decorate a room, getting the best pictures at the right moment.
You
know when you first realize you
love someone and that fresh “I can take on the world!” feeling is there
and you
promise you won’t be like “the others” and that your relationship will
be open,
honest and loving until the end of your days? Then a few years pass and
it’s
how it was before, you are content and sometimes have hard times and
good times, but mostly it’s routine. You think about those promises, you
think about the openness
you had not only with someone else, but with yourself.
What happens? Do we lose the spark
within ourselves to give a damn anymore? Do we get tired of the fight to live
in such a way that every day counts and we are the best versions of ourselves?
Do we just get to the point of
settling?
When do we stop pretending the
things that bother are us just part of it and actually get brave enough to fit
it?
This life is so short and goes so
quick, why we can’t make every day count in the biggest most magical way every
day is beyond me.
I guess, if I was to be like Buddha
and seek my own enlightenment, this would be my biggest challenge.
We stand in our own way, we settle
with routine of living a life to what we feel is the fullest.
