How to Make the Most of It

March 13, 2014 at 11:07 am • Posted in Education, Inspiration, Learnings by Wescott

If you have ever been presented with an outstandingly remarkable opportunity, a chance to do what you never ever could have imagined doing, then you know how important it is to instantly seize and make the absolute most of that very moment.

If I was a five year-old again, and someone handed me an ice cream cone, the ice cream cone of my wildest five year-old dreams (probably coffee flavored and pertaining to dinosaurs), I would eat every last bite of that ice cream, not lick it a couple of times and then throw it on the ground! Throwing my ice cream on the ground would not only be a complete and total waste, but I would never know what all those other wondrous bites, that I never got to consume, tasted like. However, the stakes are much higher now! I’m sixteen and on a trip around the world. If I don’t milk the trip for all it’s worth, then, well, I may never again have the chance to do so, because unfortunately there is not a Baskin-Robbins equipped with thirty-one different flavors of trips around the world.

Except how does one adequately soak in the trip? The countries, the cities, the cultures, the people, the snorkeling, the Greek rocks, the this, the that, the everything? As much as I want the answer to be “be there and let the experiences come to you,” I have traveled enough to say with full confidence that it takes more than just being there. You have to motivate yourself to get up for sunrise. You have to find the strength to suck it up and explore. You have to want what you want badly enough to go for it!

I have a feeling that that lesson does not only apply to travel, but to life in general, and although it may be a little late in the game, “today is the first day of the rest of my life,” and I can’t think of a better time than right now to start going for it.

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Wescott

Latest posts by Wescott (see all)

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Tom and Barbara / March 14, 2014 at 5:50 am /

Wescott, you are wise beyond your years. Your words ring so true to everything in life. Learning this life lesson at 16 is a gift. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with all of us.
- Wescott / March 16, 2014 at 11:00 pm /
  
  Hi Mr and Mrs. Tivnan! Thank you for your comment! I learned from the best!
Vanessa / March 14, 2014 at 9:49 am /

Inspirational, Wescott. Thank you. And really, it’s never ever too late. Until it is. And then it’s on to the ultimate unplanned adventure.
- Wescott / March 16, 2014 at 11:04 pm /
  
  I like “the ultimate unplanned adventure!” It sounds exciting! Thanks for reading and commenting!
Nancy Murphy / March 14, 2014 at 10:52 am /

Powerful! And to echo T+B, such wisdom for a 16-year old!
(Cliff and Lisa, you must be struck by such pride and awe every day as you usher this remarkable kids along their unique and beautiful paths!)
- Wescott / March 16, 2014 at 11:10 pm /
  
  Thank you for commenting Nancy! If I were to turn this blog post into a book I would put your comment, “Powerful! -Nancy Murphy” on the cover.
Gretchen Jones / March 14, 2014 at 3:17 pm /

Great post, Wescott! I think you are right that this “lesson” of living every day to the fullest should be a lifelong mantra, and should apply to our every day and not just our extraordinary days, like the ones we have on an around-the-world adventure. Still, it isn’t easy, even when it seems like it should be….like when you are snorkeling among a rainbow of tropical fish, or touching an elephant’s wrinkled skin, or watching the sun rise over an exotic temple. Amazing that you are aware of this at your age, and can articulate it in a way that really resonates with all travelers, young and old.
- Wescott / March 16, 2014 at 11:01 pm /
  
  Exactly! I think we are on the same page here.