One more minute: Romanticizing the wonder of being

Sometimes, I like to imagine that I have left this world forever — that I have died. Now I know this sounds awfully morbid, but hear me out.

In those moments, I picture myself wishing desperately for just one more minute to experience the wonder of being alive. To walk to class under a brilliant bluebird sky. To have the privilege of wrestling with a stubborn math problem. To feel the weight of my books pressing into my shoulders as I catch the C1 across campus. To run and run and run until my lungs ache. To grab an impromptu dinner with a friend, to swim in the ocean, to read just one more book. To laugh until I can't breathe and cry until the world feels like it’s ending — just one more time.

In the midst of these stressful current events, I’ve found myself captivated by the simple beauties of life. The vine that sprouts, defiant, from a cracked pavement. The sound of my sister’s voice over the phone, crossing the world just to make me smile. How lucky am I to have a schedule that keeps me busy! How lucky are we to learn something new every day, to have things to be nervous about, to dream of and work on towards a future we’ve been able to choose!

I recently came across a quote: "There is somebody in a hospital, and it’s their last day on earth. They’re wishing they had the same amount of time you do.: As a student from a university with fewer resources devoted to student experience — something I’ve explored in earlier articles — this resonates deeply. It reminds me how much I’ve gained during my time here, and how important it is to fully embrace the opportunities around us, especially in this post-election period.

At Duke, we’re privileged to have so much within our reach. How many universities can boast a lemur center, an art museum, terrace gardens and over 1,300 acres of land just on the main campus to explore? I talk to anyone, and the chances seem to spin themselves out of thin air into delectable possibilities.

Isn’t it exhilarating to know that through the Duke Aviators you could get your pilot's license — or at the very least take an intro flight. Or that through the Duke Conservation Society you might have a chance — as I did last weekend – to experience the stunning natural beauty and genuine impact being made on preserving our natural environment at the Marine Lab down in Beaufort? These are just two of the heaping multitudes of wonder which are offered up to us on a Duke-sized plate!

Can we acknowledge how lucky it is to just be able to attend talks on governmental lobbying with Pulitzer prize-winning journalists? Or even just to have lunch with your fascinating professor — a luxury not often afforded overseas.

Romanticize the little things: sitting in the Gothic Reading Room at Perkins, seeing sunlight percolating through wooden beams and imagining oneself the protagonist of some dramatic novel. I cannot help but delight in everything. I urge with a childish wonder that we do not delay because we "could do it next week," because that’s how time escapes us.