“He not busy being born is busy dying”

I selected this phrase for my debut post on Words to Live By because it has remained with me ever since I first heard it back in High School. It is a line from the Bob Dylan song “It’s Alright Ma, I’m Only Bleeding“. The words are always in the back of my mind and they jump out at me at various times to remind me that I need to get busy figuring out what new things I can bring to birth in my life.

There is another quote I once read that expresses a similar sentiment “This is the greatest truth I know… at every single moment I am both living and dying“. I do not know the source for that quote, but the two quotes taken together tell me to live my life with some urgency and purpose because time is short, life is fleeting and every day is an opportunity to be fully alive and to appreciate what we may not have tomorrow.  Those quotes also make me think about the parts of me that would be better off dead – qualities of mine that hold me back and keep me from growing.

One example of how these quotes have affected my thinking is the way I think about my age. Most people who are my age think of themselves as “Fifty-Three”; I tend instead to think of my age as “Five Point Three” (5.3 – the third year of my fifth decade).  Thinking of it this way doesn’t make me sound so old, but more importantly it is a reminder that, just as a new software program is enhanced and becomes better with each new version, every year is a new opportunity for me to be born again and make improvements in my life.

As an annual event I actually create a document called “AA Version 5.3” with categories like “Volunteer/Charity Opportunities“, “Spiritual Development“, “Health / Recreation“, “Life-long Learning“, and “Bucket List“. Under each category I list the things I would like to accomplish in the coming year along with the ways I would like to grow as I continue on my life’s journey. During the year I occasionally review the list to make sure I am more busy being born than busy dying.