Seize the day!
I loved this post by Anna:Often, I find myself thinking and planning, and saying things like, "oh, how wonderful life will be when I get married and have my own home"! Or, "how wonderfully fulfilled I'm going to feel as a mother! What a good homemaker I will be!"One of my favorite Latin phrases in my very, very minuscule Latin vocabulary (learning Latin is on my long to-do list of things I hope to accomplish in the next few years!) is carpe diem, roughly translated as "seize the day."
That's fine and well, but living the possibilities might make us miss out on today. I don't know what the future will bring. As you know I'm preparing for marriage - but ultimately, only God knows when and how it will happen. But I do know I have a family to love and take care of, friends to support, a home to run and manage, and a beautiful life to enjoy now. I have wonderful books to learn from; people to cook for; beautiful projects to make now. I have the duties and gifts and trials and joys He in His infinite wisdom sent me at this period of my life, and I don't want to waste today by thinking of someday and sometime instead of seizing the moment.
Seize the moment! You don't know what tomorrow will bring. But you know today will not come again. You will not be able to enjoy today's sunrise and sunset again; kind words we haven't said, smiles we held back, rush and anxiety - all those mean we are missing out on the joys of today. What a waste!
Read the whole post.
According to Wikipedia:
[This phrase] is popularly translated to 'seize the day,' however, the most appropriate translation, considering the meaning of 'carpe' in the sentence as a whole, is believed to be 'gather the day', as in picking or plucking a fruit.I love the mental picture this conjures up - that of seeing each day as an opportunity to gather up fruit, to make the most of each moment for the glory of God.
Don't stand around waiting for tomorrow to come and miss out on the wonderful things God has for you today. Seize the day!
posted by Crystal Paine at 6:04 PM
10 Comments:
I had a friend told me (when I was single), "I wish I would have waited more patiently for my wife!" I thought he was a bit crazy ;-) But it's true...once your married you look back at the waste of time worring about when, who, how marriage will happen.
I say you must enjoy the season of life you are in!
Great post...thanks for sharing.
heather
My license plate frame reads, "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may" -- I love the poem by Robert Herrick. "Gather ye rosebuds" means the same thing as "carpe diem" or "seize the day." (The teacher in the movie Dead Poet's Society used that poem to teach his students the concept of seizing the day.) Anyway, it's my life's motto, too!
There is such wisdom in this post! I have always been a planner (which is a good thing to a certain extent), but a few years ago a found myself looking so far into the future with anticipation that it seemed like I was wishing most of my life to pass by quickly in order to achieve my goals (which at the time were solely career and education related). How sad! I was looking completely past the joys young children and being a young couple just so I could get on to the next step in MY life. Over the past few years I have really began to understand the importance of living in the present God gives us. Yes, by all means plan for the future, but savor the journey. I really praise and thank God for convicting me in this area of my life.
And mermade . . . I love that poem too. I love really classic literature and poetry. They are classics for a reason.
Have a lovely day!
This post really is what I needed to see right now. I've been rather impatient about wanting to get married lately, and that really does make me miss the ways that I should be enjoying life right now.
Thank you for posting this :)
This is what God has been teaching me lately! To "stop and smell the roses" isn't as shallow of a thought when you realize how much one moment of this beautiful life really is worth! Sometimes its even harder to do when God answers prayer and gives a glimpse of the future. Its then I realize He knows best when He chooses not to reveal the future, because He wants us to live IN the moment FOR Him not being preoccupied with the future. Thanks for sharing your encouraging thoughts on this!
~ a faithful reader
Out of curiosity, what has inspired you to learn Latin? Having learned Latin for 9 of my 23 years, I have never met someone who was learning Latin on merely because they wanted to. I would love to hear your story.
thebeloved: I love studying other languages and Latin is one which especially intrigues me. Jesse studied Latin for a few years in high school and has taught me some, but I have a very long way to go before I am proficient in the language. We are planning to follow a Classical model of education for our children, so we are trying to learn all we can ourselves in order to teach them. Our desire would be that all of our children study Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
I'm glad you liked this post, Crystal. I think every single woman has those fears: when? Who? How? And the worst of all - what if I NEVER get married? Which is not to be excluded by the way. Some get married at 18 and are happy; some get married at 35 and are happy, and some never get married. Some have children. Some don't. Whatever God has in store for us, we shouldn't whine and moan, but should ask ourselves instead: 'what does He want me to accomplish?'
I hope you don't think I never have moments of anxiety, though. :) I have my times of strength and times of weakness, like everyone else. But I try to be encouraged, and encourage other women in waiting if I can.
I also loved this message - I think it was timely for so many of us!
If you want to check out some Latin curriculum materials, as a student I've used 'Ecce Romani' ('Behold, the Romans') and the Cambridge Latin course. I found the first couple of books of 'Ecce Romani' quite simple to follow - although they're especially good if you have someone to guide you through them!
Diana
I am glad to hear your interest in Classical Education. I was taught by it and now teach by a Classical Method as well. Blessings on your efforts!
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