WEBVTT - Second Cup: Life is just a memory

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is that life is mostly made up of memories.

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<v Speaker 1>We can anticipate the future, but that is largely unknown.

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<v Speaker 1>The present is fleeting memories we truly have. This ratio

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<v Speaker 1>means that it might be worth organizing life to pay

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<v Speaker 1>a bit more attention to memories than we might naturally

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<v Speaker 1>be inclined to do so. When you make your plans

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<v Speaker 1>for the day, or for a weekend, or even for

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<v Speaker 1>your year, my guess is that there are many criteria.

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<v Speaker 1>You figure out what needs to get done, You ask

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<v Speaker 1>what other people are doing. You consider what feels relaxing

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<v Speaker 1>or what is easiest at the moment. For most of us,

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<v Speaker 1>what makes the most or the best memories is not

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<v Speaker 1>going to be the primary consideration, And I'm not saying

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<v Speaker 1>that it should be, but I think it should be

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<v Speaker 1>a bigger consideration than it often is. That is because

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<v Speaker 1>life is made up of memories. The future is uncertain.

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<v Speaker 1>You can barely think about the present before it is gone.

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<v Speaker 1>Memories based on a past that actually happened are the

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<v Speaker 1>most known part of our life. Stories when we plan

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<v Speaker 1>our lives to optimize memories. We create a story, we

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<v Speaker 1>will be able to hold on to one that can

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<v Speaker 1>make our lives feel more like they happened than that

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<v Speaker 1>they were completely forgettable. Time feels stretched out. We don't

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<v Speaker 1>say where did the time go when we remember where

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<v Speaker 1>the time went. What this means in practice is nudging

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<v Speaker 1>ourselves to do things that create more memories. These may

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<v Speaker 1>not always be the easiest or most comfortable things to

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<v Speaker 1>do in the moment, but if we realize that life

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<v Speaker 1>is mostly memory, we might be more motivated. For instance,

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<v Speaker 1>traveling can be fun, but to be honest, big chunks

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<v Speaker 1>of it can be a bother. Plane flights are uncomfortable,

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<v Speaker 1>so as sleeping in new beds. Adjusting to uncertainty can

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<v Speaker 1>be challenging, as as being apart from familiar routines and

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<v Speaker 1>foods and other things. But when you think of your

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<v Speaker 1>memories of any given year, I would guess that any

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<v Speaker 1>major trips you took are one of the key ways

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<v Speaker 1>that you define the year. Oh, yes, that's the summer

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<v Speaker 1>when we went to France. My mother in law h I,

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<v Speaker 1>recently shared some of her memories with the family in

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<v Speaker 1>an album she created for all of us. Many of

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<v Speaker 1>her recollections had to do with her travels. Certainly, you

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<v Speaker 1>will have more memories of, say, a week spent on

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<v Speaker 1>a safari than a week spent in your apartment. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>you can't spend all your weeks on safari, but if

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<v Speaker 1>you have the opportunity to take a trip from time

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<v Speaker 1>to time, it is probably going to be a better

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<v Speaker 1>memory than not traveling, even if not traveling is more comfortable.

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<v Speaker 1>I have tracked my time for over seven years now,

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<v Speaker 1>and I have recently begun studying my time logs from

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<v Speaker 1>six years ago, when the date cycle was the same

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<v Speaker 1>as it was for this past year, December twenty six

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<v Speaker 1>being a Monday. In both twenty twenty two and twenty sixteen.

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<v Speaker 1>The normal days of work and kid care and costco

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<v Speaker 1>runs are hard to place. But when I see something

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<v Speaker 1>unusual on my log, something a little adventurous, I can

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<v Speaker 1>conjure up those memories pretty quickly. Memories make past times

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<v Speaker 1>feel more rich and full. Now. Of course, there is

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<v Speaker 1>nothing wrong with routines and the normal rhythm of work

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<v Speaker 1>and kid care and costco runs, but even any given

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<v Speaker 1>week can be made a little different by doing something

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<v Speaker 1>a little different In the deepest days of COVID lockdowns.

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<v Speaker 1>One family I know of made a giant game of

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<v Speaker 1>shoots and ladders with chalk on their driveway. Life is

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<v Speaker 1>a memory, and in normal life that became one. In

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<v Speaker 1>any case, as you plan the next week or the

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<v Speaker 1>next few weeks, try taking into account what memories you

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<v Speaker 1>would like to have of this time. Memories are not

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<v Speaker 1>just a passive result of life happening. They are something

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<v Speaker 1>we can consciously choose to cultivate. Yes, we can have

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<v Speaker 1>memories from things that are just spontaneously occurring, but they

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<v Speaker 1>are also the result of our planning them in and

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<v Speaker 1>choosing to do interesting, adventurous, novel intense things. Maybe not

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<v Speaker 1>every day, but not never either. When we take memory

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<v Speaker 1>into account with our plans, we simply do these things

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<v Speaker 1>more often. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod

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<v Speaker 1>that's b E the number four then breakfast Pod. You

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<v Speaker 1>can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcasts

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<v Speaker 1>at iHeartMedia dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters, thanks so much, should I look

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<v Speaker 1>forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app,

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