Biker Chick, Part 2

This is another photo from Pink Lady's modelling album (see previous post). So it's an old photo. The look says very much "biker chick", yet it was many, many years before I actually rode on the back of a motorcycle and I still don't know how to ride one myself. But I believe that we can achieve anything that we truly desire. I recently learned to drive and I'm way, way, way past the age of 18 (the legal driving age in this country). It wasn't easy to learn to drive a stick shift at my age, but I persevered, and I believe that I - and anyone for that matter - can accomplish anything that they truly want to achieve.

However, for me personally, the big problem is that, in the words of John C. Maxwell (in his book Today Matters), "You can have anything you want, but you cannot have everything you want. You have to choose." This is something that has always been extremely difficult for me. I have trouble prioritizing and letting go of less important things. I call myself a renaissance woman, but maybe it's just that I'm not focused enough.

We need to choose what we want out of life and then go for it. But how does one choose? Maxwell also writes: "Excellence comes from doing the right things right. You've got to let go of the rest. If you're not sure what the right things are, pretend you have only six months to live. The things you would do in that time are the right things." We've all heard this before, but somehow it doesn't help. If I only had six months to live, would I care about healthy eating? Would I manage my money? Would I exercize? Would I have children? Would I work? Would I study? Would I even read?!? At least in my case, the answer to all of those is NO. If I had 6 months to live, I would enjoy every second in a very hedonistic way, not caring at all about the long-term consequences. So does this really teach us how to live well?

So what would I do if I only had 6 months to live? Some of the answers might be too personal to publish here, but some of the things I would do are:


- spend time with the people most important to me (the interesting question being: who are those people? Who would I choose to spend time with?)
- sell pretty much everything I own (I'd keep some clothes, my cell phone, my laptop, my digital camera, my iPod, and some empty notebooks and pens)
- travel to places I've always wanted to visit (perhaps even around the world)
- write a book: probably about my life and what I've learnt about life. Perhaps I would also include photos from my travels.
- eat well (without any regard for health considerations, only the taste of the food would matter)
- drink the most expensive wines and champagnes I could afford
- cherish and value every second of my life
- spend every single cent of my money so that I would have nothing left over

So what does this teach me? Well, for one thing, I've certainly listed the physical objects that are most important for me in life: the things I use to document my life, i.e. writing equipment and photography equipment. And my iPod for listening to music. Nothing else matters. (I could move to the Carribean and live on the beach - except that I would need electricity. I'm a techie hippie!) So here we have my calling and mission in life: writing and photography! Both are things that I've not formally studied and I do neither for a living currently (although I have done a lot of writing and editing for a living in the past, but technical writing and technical editing - not exactly my calling in life). The reason I would write if I had six months to live is that I'd like to inspire people and make them understand the value of life and to encourage them to follow their dreams - NOW!

And the things that I most enjoy in life: people, travel, food and drink. Perhaps I should become a travel writer? :-)

What would you do if you only had six months to live? Are you currently doing those things? When will you do them?

Love always,

Pink Lady