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Occupandi temporis

Wed, 08/19/2020 - 5:00 am

Many of us have heard the Latin words, ‘Carpe diem.’ According to dictionary. com the Latin phrase means, “seize the day.” “It is used to encourage someone to make the most of the present rather than dwelling on the future.” However, it falls short in context. The whole quote is, “Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero.” According to elitedaily.com “this roughly translates to ‘Seize the day, trusting as little as possible to the future.’”

In the Bible, the Apostle Paul used this quote from Isaiah 22:13 in 1 Corinthians 15:32 where he wrote: “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” Paul was not speaking literally. His intention was to inform Christians that if there was no belief in the resurrection, life is pointless.

For the Christian, the Bible also says in Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” And in Proverbs 27:1 we read, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” Truth be told, no one is promised tomorrow. My reason for this is not about the tomorrows, but about today, and more to the point, “this moment.”

I had a friend who I had not heard from since COVID-19 broke out. I asked others, who knew him, if they had heard from him. They all responded in like manner, they had not. I could have just let it go at that, but I did not. When I returned to the office I called him only to find out he had had a massive heart attack and stroke. Hospice had been called in. I reached out to him later that evening to talk. Our conversation was brief, but I told him how I felt about him and shared that I loved him. I am glad I did. He died three days later. This has happened to me a few times now. When I was in sixth grade I was cleaning an elderly lady’s yard. The first day she came out with some Oreo cookies and milk. The second day I finished the job and she invited me in to sit with her and look at some photographs. I could have said I did not have time and just return the next day, but instead, I sat on her couch and listened to her stories about growing up. I was fascinated with her stories and asked if I could return the following day. When I came back she had died that previous evening. It happened again with my father. He called me late one evening and just wanted to talk. After an hour or so, I told him I loved him and we would talk again soon. Little did I know that was to be our last conversation. He died that night.

I am as guilty as the next guy about putting certain things off for another day. In those three incidents I knew something was different. I did not know why, but I dropped what I was doing. It was not the day I seized , but the moment. “Occupandi temporis.” That is Latin for “seize the moment.”

While many of us do what we can to enjoy this life as much as possible, remember there is someone else out there who could use a friendly word or someone who could use a hand, but it requires selflessness and some sense of urgency. No one is promised tomorrow so, “Occupandi temporis” everyone. The loss will turn to gain and a little selflessness will have its yield when it comes to making a difference, not only to someone else life, but to yours as well.