…And I feel fine…Yes, you’re welcome for that. So, to all you Mayan calendar subscribers, I offer my condolences as your subscription ends tomorrow. To the rest of us, the world isn’t going to end tomorrow, at least there is no more certainty in it ending tomorrow than this very instant. And with that thought, I realize I take every new day for granted, every next breath as given. While I am aware that I may very well only have till the end (or some fraction) of tomorrow, there is nothing special in that thought. However, what am I doing about it?

End times. Let’s just say that for the sake of argument, the world’s going to end tomorrow. Would not now be the perfect time to reassess my life? Wouldn’t now be the time to make my life one that I’d be proud of knocking on the pearly gates? Wouldn’t now be an opportune moment to really embrace the holiday spirit and spread joy around me wherever I go? Really, what time, what face have I to lose?

Today is no different. That’s right. Today is no different from yesterday or the day before or any day before that. We are not guaranteed anything in this life. Our time here is constantly counting down. The sand in the glass has always been diminishing. Yet, we grow more complacent day by day. Our time here is not significantly diminished by the dawning of tomorrow’s sun as compared to today’s. Every action, every thought could be our last. Yet, we do nothing about this fact. Have we become so calloused?

The ending of an age. This is what the Mayans were referring to by the end of their calendar. You know what, I’d be OK with proving them right. Let’s make this the end of an age of a malcontent youth hopelessly looking onto the world swirling around them. Let us usher in a world that cares about one another, from the greatest (as we see them) to the least. Let us not take for granted another breath, another meal, another interaction. Instead, let us take every breath captive and use it purposefully for beautifying the world around us. No thought, no action is too small. Come on, friend, it has to start somewhere. Why not now?

Sure, the world may end tomorrow, but how do you know it won’t end right now? I certainly don’t and it’s about time I started acting accordingly. There isn’t enough time in this life to waste, whether we have twenty-four hours or twenty-four years (or more). Starting with this Christmas season, I’m going to cherish the loved ones around me in the way that I always should have been. I’m going to love my coworkers, servers and everyone else with whom I come into contact. Because, whether we’re proving the Mayans right or not, this world needs change. And that change needs to start somewhere. Friend, will it start with you?