Nowhere but now

So it was my first time travelling and I opted for the whole shoestring budget shebang, which meant the temporary discarding of my creature comforts. Aside from giving up privacy and having my own toilet, I threw myself into the challenge of being alone in a foreign land. It turned out to be a turning point in my life, but that's a story for another time. I've met more new faces than I could remember and slept with new people on a daily basis (as in sharing dorms, you perverts). I've crossed paths with people ranging from awesome to downright scum—more of the former fortunately, and we've made plans to meet again or at least keep in touch.

The problem? No one really ever keeps in touch.

It's such a shame because meeting people you really get along with is a special occurrence in itself. Then the day comes where everyone leaves for home and life takes over. They go back to accounting, waiting tables, fire fighting; and you go back to what you've left behind. Slowly, between Facebook chats, you start to realize how hard it is to keep in touch with people living different lives. I swear that once you live apart, keeping the conversations going seem harder than coming in first in Jeopardy. Then the friendship smoulders like a dying cigarette and the only thing that remains is a memory you shared in a different place, at a time in life, with someone you might never meet again.

I've always taken clichés to being dated and untrue, but "live the moment" and "you never know what you've got till it's gone" brings a whole new meaning to me now. I've started to consciously appreciate any happy moments I have solely because there will never be a time like this again. The past is just a memory, and the future is just a result of what's happening right now, so what else really matters except the present moment?

I'm not saying that living the moment relieves you of your responsibilities, so hold that thought of quitting your day job and robbing a bank. I'm just saying that the results of your life is constantly determined by each passing moment and the decisions you make in them, so don't be putting things off. Not even gratitude.

So treasure that "mundane" dinner you're having, or the beer sessions with the group, or the laughter you're sharing, because it might just be the best time of your life and you're not present enough to even know it.