are you living your life or managing it?

there is a way of living that can quietly become your normal.

you wake up. work. eat. clean. answer messages. make appointments. think about money. think about your health. think about what needs to get done. think about what you should be doing differently.

then you go to bed and start thinking about tomorrow.

and in the middle of all of that, you realize you haven’t actually lived very much,

you have managed your life.

there is nothing wrong with working, being responsible, taking care of yourself or planning the future. these things are part of life.

but they aren’t suppose to become the whole thing.

at some point, life has to stop being a project.

you don’t have to constantly think about whether you’re doing life right.

you don’t have to analyze everything.

you can simply eat your lunch without thinking about whether it’s perfect.

you can take a walk without turning it into exercise.

you can sit outside without needing to meditate.

you can have a conversation without thinking about what it means.

you can laugh because something is funny.

you can go somewhere because you want to.

you can have an ordinary tuesday and actually be there for it.

we spend so much time thinking about our lives that we forget to experience it.

and the irony is that the more we try to figure out our lives, the less present we are.

there will always be something to improve. another goal. another problem to solve.

another thing you could be doing for your health, your career, your future.

but life isn’t waiting for you at the end of the list.

it’s happening while you’re making the list.

stop asking: how is my life going?

and experience your life.

eat the meal. feel the sun. call someone you love. go somewhere you’ve never been. listen to music. dance. go to the beach. laugh until your stomach hurts.

do absolutely nothing for a while. not because it will make you a better version of yourself, but because you are alive.