LATELY

HAVE YOU looked at yourself in the mirror lately? Really looked and seen things that weren’t there before? A grey spot here and there, perhaps; or an extra handle in the middle somewhere, a few funny rings around twitchy circles, some superfluous lines over rough edges that won’t go away. Or did you discern a new-fangled sparkle, a twinkle in the eye that radiates a warm glow, an inscrutable smile on the threshold of rapture, perchance to exact mayhem on an otherwise complacent state of being.

The mirror has two faces. Do you see the heady flush of maturity, or the alarming onset of senior status? Is it the sensuous aura of wisdom and experience, or the frightening advent of bodily dysfunction? Else, might it be the promise of renewed passions, instead of the disquieting onslaught of dead cells and dormant hormones?

Indeed, time has taken its toll on your visage; after all, no one is exempt from that torturous premise otherwise known as the law of gravity. But then again, in case you have been too much in a world of your own to even notice, you are at the prime of your life! Isn’t today the tomorrow you’ve been worrying about yesterday? So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles for a while. Live it, love it, rock it, now.

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Have you gazed through the eyes of a child lately? Stared through and noticed the perplexed expression on his cherubic face? They speak volumes, a child’s eyes, penetrating through gaping holes in our subconscious, unearthing hidden guilts, harking us back to promises unfulfilled, breathing new life to unrequited wishes.

When was the last time you stopped to pat his head, muss his hair, twiddle his thumb, chase him around or just hug him tight? They grow up so fast these days, so fast and so furious it stumps you when you find out the child has become a man. When did he get to be so tall? Wasn’t it yesterday when he was small? And then you wonder where your own innocence went.

They are our likeness, a reflection of everything that is good, or bad, in us. We see a little, or a lot, of ourselves in them; and yet, more often than not, we take them to a quick ride through life’s merry-go-round with eyes wide shut. Are they merely part of the baggage, or the main journey itself? An appendage that discomfits you, or the love light that consumes you?

*****

Have you engaged anyone in a gratifying conversation lately? Real-time repartee, not punched on a keyboard or thumbed on a cell phone. Heart-to-heart, eyeball-to-eyeball, no-holds-barred, cards-on-the-table discussions with people who matter in your life. It is rapidly becoming a lost art, the art of conversation; pitiably snowed under by the constantly evolving wonders of technology.

Do you remember when it was you last wrote someone an honest-to-goodness letter the old-fashioned way? Do you, by any chance, still know the loops and twirls of your own handwriting? Most of the time, for lack of time, you would rather gawk at the blinking screen than take in the sounds and sights of an actual interactive exchange. You would rather pound feverishly away at the computer keys than enunciate your thoughts using all your senses.

There is just no substitute for crackling laughter and giggly banter, no virtual reality experience for genuine sentiment and unfounded fears, no stand-in emotion for crying out loud and driving another person crazy. Technological savoir faire empowers you to do things you haven’t done before, but it also dulls you of sensations better felt than conveyed through an emoticon or two. So go ahead and talk, listen, laugh, gaze, smell, touch, savor, live, love!

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Have you told anyone how you feel lately? Said it like it is, straight from the shoulder, without mental reservation, with a tug in the heart? Procrastination is the devil’s workshop, and being perpetually ensconced in our dog-eat-dog subsistence is no excuse for taking our loved ones for granted, complacent in the thought that they are just a glance away.

For once, just once, wear your heart on your sleeve; go for the jugular, throw caution to the wind, seize the moment, be spontaneous. Say it out loud, whether you’re ashamed or proud. Don’t take a second to hesitate before you jump into the water or take a leap of faith. Don’t let a sudden twist of fate overtake you and find out one sad day that someone is no longer there forever. What then of things undone, words unsaid? Regrets are many, and we pay dearly.

Kiss then your mother in the forehead more often. Walk your father to the wharf just as frequently. Cuddle up with the one you’re with, hold their hand and keep it close to your chest. Wrestle with the little rascals and smother them with baby kisses till they turn away from your tender embrace. Call up a friend you haven’t spoken to since that juvenile spat. Be patient with an annoying youngster, and hold your breath for the one who brings out the muse in you.

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What have you done for yourself lately? Surrounding yourself with earthy frills is fine, but haven’t you yet gotten weary with merely just surviving, doing the same rut over and over? Isn’t it the time of your life to do things that are mind-liberating rather than thought-provoking, body-relaxing rather than physically-draining, soul-feeding rather than soul-searching?

Are you forever caught in the I-don’t-know-where-I’m-going-but-I’m-on-my-way stage, or do you have this devil-may-care what-the-heck-life-is-short-anyway sensibility? Getting entangled in a web of self-inflicted anguish over unreachable goals or never-ending aspirations can be frustrating, maddening, exasperating, infuriating, vexing to the brain, the flesh, and the spirit. Pause for a while and give yourself a respite from exerting too much blood, sweat and tears over things that will pass. Experience a novel sensation, or revisit an old haunt.

Take up a new sport, or any sweat-inducing movement that could pass for a sport. Is golf too urbane for you? And the sun too harsh on your skin? It wouldn’t hurt to play sophisticated lady or worldly gentleman for a change, walk under an umbrella or hide beneath a hat, strut a confident stance across the length and breadth of eighteen impenetrable holes, never mind the wobbly legs or the protruding gut.

Take a look inside the old treasure chest sitting in a forsaken corner of your room and dig deep for long-forgotten memories, the better for you to summon a bittersweet tear or two. Peep outside the window of an airplane and see the clouds drifting far below and marvel once more at the mysteries of Creation. Play piano in the dark, or learn a new jig even if you believe you dance like a frog in a blender.

Watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s for the very first time, or read Wuthering Heights all over again. Find an occasion to wear the little red dress that’s been hanging in your closet for ages, or the crisp Armani jacket that’s been known to make heads turn to your direction. Write the poem that’s been filtering in your head for a while and give it to a friend as a present.

Heed the siren call of the mystic river of your childhood or the surreal sound of angelic voices that once ran shivers down your spine. Shed off that self-deprecating exterior and show off the side of you that charms the socks out of strangers lurking perilously in the night. Get down on your knees, if you haven’t done so in years, and lift up your spirit to The One who patiently waits at the Last Train Station.

Most of all, don’t give up on you; go on chasing rainbows, spinning dreams. The future, you know, isn’t just one night!