
Thanks to Disney Plus, Hamilton is available to the masses. I have to say, that play is simply amazing. The creativity of it all, the talent, the songs, the history, it’s simply a marvelous creation. And, it has catchy songs.One in particular, “Non-Stop,” keeps running through my head. It won’t leave, it’s non-stop. See what I did there?
Anyway, the repeating lyric, or question, in “Non-Stop” is Why do you write like your running out of time? That question keeps playing in my head.
In my interpretation, I think Alexander Hamilton wrote like he was running out of time because he was. He was trying to leave his mark in the world, to be remembered after he was gone. One of the lessons in the play is that you don’t get to choose who writes your story. That’s true. But if they are writing about you, or telling your story after you’re gone, you did leave a mark. Even if they get your story completely wrong, you left a mark and you made some type of difference.
Why do you write like your running out of time?
If you don’t write, if you have a craft, a skill, or something you’re passionate about, a purpose, you could insert that instead. Do you pursue your purpose that way?
Do you live like you’re running out of time?
Do you notice the world around you, the wonder of a bee, the smell of a rain shower, the song of a bird? Do you sense the hearts of those around you, do you look into their eyes, can you see past their frames and into their souls?
You are here. But do you live?
This life is short. You’ve heard that. We are here for a brief moment in time, like vapor. When we are gone, the world will spin on. But there is a chance we can have an effect on how it spins. There is a chance we can make our mark so deep that the lives of generations following us will be better. There is a chance they will tell our stories.
That’s one reason we are here, to leave our marks. But there is also another reason we are here, to be marked. This world, this life, it is meant to leave it’s mark in us as well. We are here to take it in, to notice it, to enjoy it, to love it.
To leave our mark and to be marked, that is living. That is why we are here.
Yes, we can live as if we are here forever and take everything around us for granted, we can squander our opportunities and our gifts, and we can never make a difference to anything or anyone. We can miss the beauty around us, we can take sunsets for granted, dispise noisy birds, ignore stupid butterflies, and curse terrible rain clouds.
Or, or we can live as if there is no tomorrow. We can share our gifts and talents with the world, holding nothing back. We can make eye contact, touch a hand, offer a shoulder, or listen without speaking. We could sing with the birds, feed the squirrels, and dance in the rain. Can you imagine? How would you live if there was no tomorrow? What would you do, what could you notice if you were truly present and here where you belong?
The question to Hamilton was “why do you write like your running out of time?”
But I think the question for all of us is “why don’t you write like your running out of time?” Because you are. Write your story, leave your mark, and also let yourself be marked. Be here and live your best life.
Don’t take this life for granted. Take it in. Be the person you were created to be, the person you want to be. The history books, legends and fables don’t belong to a chosen few throughout time. They belong to all of us. When you’re gone, let the world remember that you were here. Let people fight about who gets to write your story. And If not in books, in tales, legends, and hearts.
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