Life as a Mountain? Or a Series of Moments?

“I used to think of life as a path — it’s going somewhere and you walk on it. Or life is a mountain and you’re going to climb it to the top. Now I think life is a series of moments.”

Lucy Kalanithi is the speaker of the above quote. In talking about her own life story, Kalanithi shared this belief.

She continued, “When Paul (Lucy’s husband and author of When Breath Becomes Air) was sick, I could see it as a moment. Same with [my daughter] Cady being a baby. I was like, ‘This person needs me and this person needs me, and that’s what I’m doing right now.’”

It’s a legitimate philosophy about life.

Some people feel differently, however. Many clients feel like Kalanithi did previously—that life is a path with a momentous “end” where all things become clear. They tell me this as we write their life story’s final chapter together.

Here’s what one client had to say about it:

“I once had a doctor who told me that life is like climbing a hill…. I believe that we continue to go up that hill as long as we live so that when we reach old age, we can look down from that lofty mountain….”

What do you believe? Is life a mountain or a series of moments?

It’s an interesting question and one with an answer that may change with age. Or maybe not.

Regardless of how you look at it, your life story is worth exploring and writing. Your moments—falling in love, becoming a parent, finding your passion, fighting illness—may build to one meaningful mountain or may remain unconnected memories.

Both views are okay. And I’d like to hear about your life story either way.

Contact me to learn more.