September 11, 2024

What if the most extraordinary moments of your life are actually the most ordinary ones? We often focus on life’s major events - vacations, birthdays, career milestones - but these are rare occurrences in the grand scheme of things, hardly making up the majority of life. An average life consists of around 29,000 days, and the vast majority of these days are filled with routine activities: sleeping, cooking, eating, working, and attending to the countless other tasks that keep our lives running smoothly.

It’s easy to overlook the significance of these ordinary days and the moments that comprise them, dismissing them as unimportant compared to the bigger, more memorable events. I believe that to be a large mistake. These very moments warrant attention and should be elevated with greater significance.

As Annie Dillard observed, how we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. The small actions, choices, and moments that make up each day shape our experiences, relationships, and the very quality of our existence—they are the substance of our lives. These mundane experiences, often taken for granted, are the essential components of our lives.

Rising with the sun, preparing food, performing work, conversing with friends and strangers, winding down as daylight fades, turning in to sleep. These routine acts are integral to our daily life. Rather than going through these motions thoughtlessly, there is great meaning in performing even the most mundane tasks with care, earnestness, and attention.

How might your life change if you brought more intention to elevating these daily routines? Arranging your meal with an eye for detail, speaking to others with sincere interest and kindness, and approaching your work with diligence and pride. Over time, this practice will lead to a life of greater fulfillment. While these actions may seem trivial in isolation, their cumulative effect is significant.

“Days build life” serves as a reminder that the richness and depth of our lives are not found solely in the grand, extraordinary events, but in the way we choose to engage with the seemingly mundane moments that make up our daily existence. Actively seeking to elevate the ordinary, to find meaning and beauty in the everyday, and in result building a life of meaning and beauty.

This is not a call for mere gratitude or acknowledgment, but a summons to intentionally craft a life where the sacred is integrated into the ordinary.