It is morning. For me. Almost ten. I am going to work later today, so I allowed myself the small luxury of sleeping longer. An Alpine idyll. A warm apartment. Hot coffee. Snow-covered hills beyond the window.
Everything is set correctly. Work. Love. Direction.
And yet… this morning.
It was her who woke me. For her, it is no longer morning. She works hard, even though it is Saturday, and the arrangement of time on Earth has ensured that in her life it is already afternoon. The phone rang. I was happy to see and hear her.
My morning routine and the sense of belonging that comes with drinking coffee alongside someone close were guiding my steps. The moment I was ready for my emotional reward — coffee with her — the sentence came: “I have to get back to work.”
Gently, as only she can say it. We said goodbye, and the call ended.
I often evaluate my actions. My behavior. I decide for myself whether it was right, or whether something needs to change.
Reflection came again. And I am not satisfied. I see that I acted out of habit, driven by the desire for my own dopamine, instead of pausing to consider my priorities and act according to them.
I should have stood up. Stayed seated at the table. Given her the time we had.
Is this reflection unnecessary? Perhaps it is trivial. Perhaps most people would simply let it pass.
But we never know which minute is the last. Whether we will use it well or waste it — and how we will see it once it has become the past.
We speak of the last minute as if there were only one. But in truth, we have hundreds of them. Last minutes in farewells with people we care about. In places we will never return to. In moments that leave a mark within us.
Hundreds of moments. Hundreds of thoughts: “Why didn’t I do it differently?”
And the answer? Let us learn to think about everything we do through our priorities. That is the only way to be at peace with ourselves.