“If you wake up 30 years from now, and all you are is 30 years older, that is a crime.” –MacGyver

Since my Dad died I’ve been taking more trips into my past. It is comforting to find him in those memories and moments when I can’t find him in my present. Recently I got to thinking about some things he enjoyed and the show MacGyver was one of those things. For those that don’t know MacGyver, go find it – it’s a classic. My simple explanation of the show is it’s the adventures of a guy always getting into wild messes, yet he innovates genius ways to get out of trouble. MacGyver and my Dad taught me that I can make anything happen, I just have to think of all the possibilities. I was watching an old episode when this quote struck me deeply.

How many of us are still just going through the motions? Are we really living the life we want to be living or will we look back in 30 years with sadness or regret? Misusing the time we have in life CAN be seen as criminal. Many of us have skills, abilities, and purpose that maybe aren’t being lived or used, while others have barriers stopping them from the same freedoms we have. If you think about it, there is likely something in your life you wish was different or you want to be doing. And this isn’t just you – it is all of us. Now is the time to change, to chase that purpose, to say no to the obligations, to do even the littlest things for a better lifetime. This isn’t selfish and this isn’t just for us but it’s for those around us, too. If we are seeking our happy, that action will ripple out to the people around us and become a legacy of passion and hope.

In 30 years we can look back and say, “I did that. I lived that. I loved them.”

Sarah Deats

Sarah Deats is the Hope Inc. Stories Inspiration Engineer. Her goals are to make a connection with everyone that she can while building community, spreading hope, and sparking change. She believes that while life may not be easy, it is never lived alone.