I hung out with my Grandpa this past weekend. I also spent time with friends to celebrate an upcoming wedding. One was a time of loud celebration. The other was a time of quiet infestivity, recollection, and reflection.
Both reminded me an important aspect of life: life is a fickle thing, so be as present as you can or else you’ll miss the moment.
A time of quiet infestivity, recollection, and reflection
Whenever my Grandpa and I hang out, we play a game of Chinese chess. Even though he’s 93, he still gives me a run for my money. I’ve lost way more games than I’ve won. If I had to guess, I’m like 3-12 against him; this score includes the game I won this past weekend.
After we finished playing, we just sat around the table and chatted about his life now and when he was younger. The room was dimly lit and pretty quiet – the AC wasn’t on and there wasn’t any music playing.
He was telling me in Chinese – “it’s so annoying and frustrating to live when you get older because you become more forgetful and your ability to critically think weakens”. He was sharing how he thought some of my pieces were his pieces on the chess board (which was probably why he was blundering from the start of the game).
I could see and hear his frustration. When I looked at him, I saw his droopy eyes and frowned face. When he spoke, I could hear his struggle to speak loudly to express his frustration. His voice would start high and then gradually become quieter from his weakened vocal chords.
He then started sharing about his difficult childhood from when he started running to escape the Japanese during China’s war with Japan to serving in the navy after high school. It was a time of recollection and for me to get to know my grandpa more. I was typing out as much as I could translate onto my phone because I knew I would forget these stories if I didn’t write them down.
Time flew by. After about 2.5 hours of talking and playing chess, I went back home to get some sleep and prepare for my friend’s party the next day.
A time of celebration
I attended a small tea party at The Tea House On Los Rios to celebrate a middle school friend’s upcoming wedding. Early congrats on your wedding Tiff and Dan 🙂 I can’t wait to celebrate with you again on your official day!
Everybody dressed up all nice and spiffy (the invitation said “smart casual” — I still have no idea what that is haha).
I reunited with some old friends that I hadn’t seen after high school. It’s amazing how fast time flies when you get older. I feel like it was just yesterday when everybody had just graduated high school. Now people are either engaged, married, having kids, or have kids.
There was champagne, fancy tea, and sandwiches and sweets to go with the tea. This was the most classy tea time I’ve ever had…
We also played games on how well people knew the soon to be bride and groom. My table ended up tying for 2nd place. The parent’s table got 1st…no surprise.
I even brought my yearbooks so people could see how much of a glow up (or glow down) people had.
There were tons of laughter and banter. People were taking pictures with each other. Glasses were being raised in honor of the bride and groom. It was truly a time of memorable celebration.
Be present or else you’ll miss the moment
As I look back on that weekend, I can’t help but think of the fact that life is just so fickle. One day, I’m spending time listening to my old Grandpa and his life struggles in his dimly lit quiet room. And then the next day, I’m laughing and celebrating an upcoming marriage with my friends. I’m super grateful to have done both, but the turn of events was a bit unexpected.
The unpredictability of life is one of life’s best and worst qualities. You’re having a good day, and then the next day, things could go completely south. I experience those ups and downs constantly. I’m pretty sure everybody does.
You can’t predict how your life will go, but you can control how present you are in each moment of your life. Whenever I catch myself thinking too much about the past or worrying too much about the future, I remind myself to focus on the now. Some of those moments can be defining moments in your life so it’s important to be present or else you’ll miss the moment.
