Read Part 1 of this series.

I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
Because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever. (Psalm 16:8-11)

How fitting that our Responsorial Psalm in today’s Mass reminds us that God will show us the path to life and give us fullness of joy. As discussed last time (May 1, 2025), joy is what we obtain when we live life abundantly. This path to a full life and the act of being fully alive, of obtaining true joy, is the meaning of life.

Once, at daily Mass in our church, our associate pastor, Father Michael Angeloni, said something that truly struck me. He said that everyone always says that life is short but in reality, life is the longest thing we will ever do.

Think about that. Life is the longest thing you will ever do.

Even if you work at the same job for 20 years, even if you are married to the same person for 50 years, whether you go to school for 12 years, 16 years, or 20 years, none of those will last as long as the entirety of your life.

 

You Only LIVE Once

Why do we dwell on how short life is when it’s literally the longest event we will ever experience? Life is the one thing we have a literal lifetime to perfect, to achieve, to become. We have our entire lives to live life in abundance, to discover its meaning for ourselves.

We should put more energy into thinking about what we are to do with our lives in the long run, not just today. This is what will bring us the joy of being fully alive.

There is something about the mantra, YOLO (You only live once) that has always bothered me. People use it as an excuse to do crazy things, to take unnecessary risks, and to throw away stability on a whim. Instead, shouldn’t we be putting all our efforts into perfecting the life we have been given? Shouldn’t we be looking for ways to be a better person, to fully use our talents, and to make this life the very best life it can be? Shouldn’t we be living our life abundantly with a bold passion, our eyes always on making our life and the lives of others better, richer, more meaningful?

There is a difference between having a passion for life and passionately living life. We can have a passion for life and strive to live to the fullest, being kind to others, exploring and using our gifts and talents, and growing into the person we are meant to be. We can also live life passionately, jumping from one thing to another, flying blindly without noticing where we are or who we are, and throwing caution to the wind. These two ways of living life with passion are very different.

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t climb mountains and sky dive and fulfill our wildest dreams. It just means that we should know why we are doing it. Are we running from life, abandoning the life we’ve made, or living dangerously for unhealthy reasons?

Or are we truly taking advantage of all the opportunities that God has given us to live abundantly in this longest thing we’ll ever do? These are questions we must ask, among other, loftier questions.

 

A Successful Life

Why are you here?

Why has God given you the gift of life?

Who do you want to be?

What do you want your life to represent?

What will the meaning of your life be?

St. Gianna Molla is credited with saying, “The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day” (SaintGianna.org).

A successful life is lived moment by moment. Finding joy in each of these moments can be difficult, but we’re only given one life, and we need to enjoy it. This doesn’t mean we should live so passionately that we become reckless, but we should live with a passion for life. We should live with the knowledge that life is a gift we’ve been given, and we will have it as long as we’re on this earth. It’s meant to be cherished, shared, matured, and most importantly, lived. And we are meant to thank God for the life we have.

Unlike your time in school, your work career, your friendships, even your marriage, life is the one constant that is with you from the day you are born until the day you begin your eternal life. It’s the longest thing you will ever do, and you are meant to make the most of it.

As you work to achieve your dreams, make the most of each day and do your best to let each moment brim with love. (Pope Francis, Christ is Alive, 25 March 2019)

 

What are some ways we can make the most of life? We will explore this in Part 3, July 3, 2025.

---

Copyright 2025 Amy Schisler
Photos copyright 2025 Amy Schisler, all rights reserved.