Happy Sunday friends! I’m back! Who knows for how long, but I’m back. It’s been great to let go of The Sunday Edition for an extended period of time. Though I don’t connect much with others who blog, I imagine it’s common occasionally to hit a roadblock in your head. Burnout. Boredom. Take your pick. Like any fun hobby, a guy has to take a break from time to time.
This extended “sabbatical” provided some time to ponder what The Sunday Edition has become and where I think it properly fits. Sunday Editions have a precise 24-hour lifespan. They are time-specific, context-specific, and can rarely capture a larger thought process. They are a fair bit easier to produce, mind you, and the barrier to entry (the barrier being my energy) is a fair bit lower than a longer, dedicated blog post.
I’ll probably need more than a few weeks to ponder this. Even after 12+ years of writing this blog, I still don’t know what I want it to be. I hope, above all else, this is a sign of maturity and changes in the seasons of life, and not an overall poor author.
The Idol of the Bucket List
I once attended a funeral for a well-known businessman. He was well-known for a reason — if you ventured through his store, you always left knowing you were taken care of, that you were served, and that you could return someday for your next need. In so many ways, this gentleman embodied small-town grace — always connecting and working through his customers into the greater community and beyond.
With each story told at his funeral, however, an over-arching theme emerged: Once those doors closed at the end of the workday, this business owner hit the road in the pursuit of making memories.
Few people would say this with a negative connotation. On its face, making memories and living a full, well-lived life paints a beautiful picture. Modern society tells us memories are the ultimate currency. We’re supposed to purchase flights, not things; to collect moments, not possessions; to live now, not tomorrow. That collection of memories wraps itself around the very fabric of our modern lives, and will be fiercely protected as unique and worth every investment.
You’ve likely heard “You don’t take your bank account with you” when you pass away. You know what else you don’t take with you? Your memories.
As soon as you take that last breath, that vast archive you’ve spent a lifetime building — major investments in time and money — vanish. Your memories cease, and at best live on in the lives of those you’ve invested in. Once they’ve passed on, your memories— their memories — are no more. In 100 years, effectively nobody will remember you.
The only thing you take across that final destination is your faith. You develop that faith here, through things seen and unseen, and you use that faith there when you stand before your Father in heaven.
There’s a trap here, to be sure. Where the last 20 years have produced this anti-possession, pro-minimalist approach to building a full life, we’ve converted our love of possessions into a love of experiences. Minimalism, meet experientialism. Making memories can become an idol just as easily as any individual possession or hoarding wealth. Our bucket lists become our own personal creeds, our own personal doctrines that we live by, swear by, and will die by.
In reality, experiences — just like possessions — make terrible gods. The high of a new experience is extraordinarily fleeting and leave you more hungry for an even better trip, an even better ride, and an even better high. These things cannot be the foundation of our lives; we cannot have goals to maximize our personal good vibes archive. This misses the point of why we were created. Our purpose is far greater: to serve He who created us and who created this Earth.
Quote of the Week
“When you sprint, you sprint hard. When you rest, you rest hard. The most successful people apply this same approach to life. They aren't grazing for hours. They sprint, then rest.”
— Sahil Bloom
In line with my current modus operanda, if I do say so myself.
Other Thoughts
I’ve been posting a few other pieces here and there, under their own dedicated titles so they are easier to find in the future (not just for SEO, to be clear; I’m having a hard time finding all the things I’ve written about on The Sunday Edition and need a better system.)
Bauhaus Clock for iPhone and iPad
The Bauhaus Clock app for iPhone and iPad is a beautifully crafted, premium time-telling tool that delights users with its meticulous attention to visual, haptic, and audio details.
Rules and Standards
Reflecting on a quote by baseball coach Tim Corbin, I’d argue that striving for higher standards and living by the spirit of a rule is far more valuable than rigidly obsessing over technicalities.
Use a Scaled Virtual Machine Resolution in Parallels and Enjoy the Speed
In which I explain that switching a Parallels virtual machine to a "Scaled" resolution drastically improves system performance and software usability.
The Google FitBit Air is My First-Ever Google Product
This is my first experience with a Google product. In this, I note that despite an enthusiastic pre-order, the unboxing, setup, and syncing experiences felt cheaper, more rigid, and less seamless than what I’m accustomed to in the Apple ecosystem.
Fresh Links Roundup
Here were a few things I shared from the past few weeks (months!, yeesh, it’s been awhile). If you want to stay on top of the list throughout the week, don’t be afraid to subscribe via RSS.
- Oliur's iPhone ProRAW Neutral Collection Presets
- Fun Illustration of MLB's Lack of Salary Cap
- Star Fox for Switch 2 Trailer
- Leveraging My Second Brain to Build a Chief of Staff (and Secretary)
- Bubbles Briefing
Happy Sunday. I hope you have a wonderful week ahead.
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