How do we waste Thee? Let me count the Ways

Sometimes we catch ourselves in situations that ultimately waste our lives. Be it our own fault or not, there are certain events that trap us which lead us to being unproductive, we might as well have not lived at all.

Hence eight months ago, I came out with this list I called,

Mga bagay, sitwasyon at pangyayaring nakakapagpasayang sa buhay at panahon:

1. Trapik! Bad traffic. Imagine how many things you would have been able to do if you were not trapped in impossible traffic. I strongly abhor paralyzed traffic! The time hard-working Filipinos waste stuck in little and big streets of Manila is better off spent in their respective workplaces, thereby resulting in remarkable progress for our country’s economy.

2. Mabagal na PC at internet connection. Slow PC and even slower internet connection. How can anyone get plenty of work done if it is faster to enumerate the regions in our country along with their provinces than to boot one’s computer? And, boy, does slow internet connection kill momentum!

3. Ang tumutok lang sa TV (or Youtube) maghapon. Staying glued in front of the television for hours. I plea guilty to this. Unfortunately, I often indulge first and be eaten by remorse later. But just the same, being addicted to TV or computer games or being overly indulged in a book deprives us of the life we should be living for real instead of being reduced to experiencing vicariously.

4. Ang maging negative sa buhay. Minsan sayang din ang OA sa pagiging positive. Living in a self-inflicted miserable world as well as in a blindingly positive planet. Bitterness, sadness, negative thoughts, and misery in general impede us from moving on with our lives. They give us a tainted view of the world and we end up cringing, if not cursing. On the other hand, optimism to a fault leaves us hanging and hoping forever, we end up eternally waiting instead of making things happen. Feeling sorry for ourselves and passively awaiting salvation are such a waste of life!

5. Ang magpakatanga sa mga taong never ka namang mamahalin. *Naks!* Unrequited love. Yes, emotional investments that clearly promise no returns, let alone interests. It is wise to find a different worthy love if the one you’re pinning for is an obvious lost cause. Battered wives may be severely guilty of this fault.

6. Ang matulog lang. Oversleeping. It is one of the proven ways to miss out on life. We might as well do whatever we can now that we are able than wonder what we should have done when we are stuck in our death bed. A famous workaholic once said something like, “I’ll work my ass off now; anyway, I’ll have plenty of time to sleep when I’m dead.” True!

7. Ang makipag-usap sa mga taong kahit hukayin mo ng six feet ang sinasabi ay talagang walang sense. Talking to someone who seriously makes no sense. At that point, plan an escape. Terminate the conversation and do other things. Chances are, those “other things” will make more sense than talking to the empty vessel.

Gossiping, taking drugs and drinking are fixed givens where wasting life is concerned. And although I have taken the time to list seven, I know that there are more ways to waste our waking hours. But to enumerate is not really the point of my entry.

Carpe diem is.

Life is too precious to waste. Live!