Want Immortality?

Hey there everyone!!

At another improv class, we were playing a game called “5 Things”. The idea is to come up with a list of five things (the list is suggested by someone else), as quickly as possible—like instantly.

It's amazing what our mind generates when we have no judgements, no barriers, and just say the first thing that comes to our mind.

So somebody asked me to name five things I'd like to have before I die.

A million dollars was my first answer. Not surprising.

A girlfriend was my number two. Yup, that's how authentic and vulnerable I get on stage and in public.

Respect was the word that came out of me next. I think that was my unconscious attempt at comedic humor. I'm planning on taking a stand-up comedy class soon. :)

What my fifth “thing” was, surprised me the most. I said “immortality”.

Later I reflected on the genius of that answer. If I was to get immortality before I die, then I would never die.

Wait a minute! This could turn into an interesting riddle, I thought.

What would you like to have before you die?
A wise person says, immortality.

But isn't a wise person already pursing those things that he or she wants and periodically obtaining some of them?

What would you like to have before you die?
A wiser person might say, “I already have the things that I want.”

But we never stop creating new goals. That's the secret of life, and that's the pursuit of happiness.

What would you like to have before you die?
The wisest person simply states one of the goals they are currently moving towards.

That's the lesson I've been learning over the years, and that's the lesson improv has been teaching me. Rather than focusing so far ahead in the future with glorious ambitions, let us simply be present. One of my most powerful visual articles which encapsulates the depth of this wisdom is called Happily Do What's Next and Make the Most of It.

Twenty years ago I heard a powerful message by Randy Haugen, an independent business owner and motivational speaker. He said, “Put your dreams in front of you, spend your whole life chasing them, and never give up.”

Put your dreams in front of you, because that's what's next (the next step towards your dreams). Spend your whole life chasing them, because you will always be replenishing your dreams with new ones. And never give up, because life can't keep knocking us down forever—Sooner or later, we're going to get up, and we're going to win.

Let's love the world together...

Love,
[)anish /|hmed, blind visionary