Used to Be

For the past year and a half, I have been trying to learn more Spanish by using Duolingo. Since Covid-19 has changed our world, I have found more time to hone some language skills. Recently, I have been studying different tenses of verbs such as present, past, and future. In Spanish, one of the forms is called past imperfect. For instance, yo corría rápido means I used to run fast. This made me think about all the things I used to do. At my age, I can count a large number of “used tos”. At times, I get a little discouraged or sad about what I have lost the ability to do.

However, I was reminded this morning that I have a choice on what I focus on. While I am unable to run as fast as I could before, I am able to move well enough to stay healthy. While I have diminished vision and hearing, I am still capable of seeing sunsets and hearing beautiful music. While I have less hair on my head, I can appreciate the ones that are left, no matter what color they are.

The pandemic has cause all of us to face “used tos”. It is alright to grieve what we have lost, whether a small activity or a way of life. Yet, while we still have breath and strength, we must let go of what we used to be able to do and embrace what we can do now. While some things may go back to the way that “used to be”, we as people will probably not. But, that’s a good thing. Whatever we may lose, we can gain experience, insight, and wisdom that can guide us on the next phases of our lives. The truth is no matter who we are, we have a limited allotment of days. So, we can fret about what used to be, we can worry about tomorrow, or we can do what we can today to be creative, productive, compassionate, and alive.

Back to my Spanish education, my friends from Costa Rica have a national motto: Pura Vida! It literally means “pure life”, but it means so much more in action. You cannot focus on the imperfect past if you have your sights on living Pura Vida. I hope you find something today that invigorates or inspires you. In the same spirit, seek to be that for someone else. ¡Pura Vida!