We did it! We made it through another year of this game we call life, isn’t that swell? Well, it actually is, tomorrow is never guaranteed you know. Sorry, that was a bit heavy this soon into the post, but it is a point I think most people forget, hence the name of this entry:

For Granted

What exactly do people take for granted? Well, as mentioned, their own lives. We truly never know when we are going to die, but most people figure that they will live into old age and pass naturally, which, statistically speaking, is the proper thinking, as most men live to 75.8 years and women to 81.1 years (in the US, anyway). So, you go about living your life: wake up, eat, get in your car, drive to work/school, slave through whatever work you have to do, get back in your car, drive ho—bam. Car crash. And that’s that, your life here on Earth is done at the ripe age of 20, 40, 60, whatever it is, that’s it. No redoes, no reconciliations, no final goodbyes, that’s it. That vacation you were going to go on? Not happening. Proposing to your girlfriend? Off the table. Retirement just around the corner? You won’t make the turn.

Look, I know that was extremely daunting and morbid, but I’m trying to make a point here. We don’t know when we’re going to die. But you know what? That’s okay, as long as we don’t take our life, ahem, for granted. Now I’m not saying abandon all your responsibilities and have a midlife crisis (especially if you aren’t even middle aged) but make your life worth living. Find something that brings you joy: cooking, hanging with friends or family, watching TV, movies, or sports, exercising, biking, rock climbing, video games, reading, you get my point. Because guess what? As long as you’re not doomed to a tragic car crash (it is just an example do not worry about this), in your old age you will be able to look back on your life and not have any regrets. You’ll be able to say, “I lived my life doing things I loved, surrounded by people I loved and who loved me. I lived a good life,” and at the end of the day that’s all we can ask for.

(Slight disclaimer, this section was not written to make you worry about dying young or suddenly, I am merely trying to have you realize you need to start living your life if you haven’t already)

So, what else do people take for granted? To that I would say the people around them. Whether family, friends, or lovers of the nighttime, everyone assumes they will always be there. The possibility of those we love being gone never crosses the mind. And so, we take them for granted, we never express how truly grateful we are to have them in our lives, how lucky we are to have them by our side. Eventually though a day will come when we will be without them, whether death or otherwise, and we will have to ask ourselves, “Did I spend enough time with them? Did I appreciate them in the moment? Did they know just how much they meant to me?”

These same questions racked my head after my father’s passing. Did I spend enough time with him? Did I appreciate him in my life when he was alive? Did he know how much I loved him? Luckily, I am able to answer a resounding yes to all of these questions, and that helps me cope with his loss some (along with my belief in God and Heaven). I didn’t take him for granted, and I am so unbelievably grateful for that.

Truthfully, that experience is what led me to write this post, I don’t want anyone to take others for granted and live with regret for the rest of their lives. “Oh I should have told them I loved them, I should have spent more time with them, I should have…” It is torturous. Again, I do want to emphasize that this sentiment does not only apply to those who passed, it can also apply to those who drift away, grow apart, or be separated by conflict. The nice things about those situations, compared to death, is that there is always time to mend that bridge, make it so they are no longer taken for granted.

Last thing I will touch on before signing off on this post is a bit of a different view on things. What is it like to be the one taken for granted? Well for those who haven’t experienced it (or haven’t realized they have) it sucks. A lot. There is no easy way to explain it. The best way I can think of is to describe it as someone who you care about deeply (most of the time) stops appreciating you for you. You become the norm. It is expected you will support them how you regularly do while receiving no real support from them.

To give an example, imagine your friend is sad their dog died, so you comfort them and try to cheer them up. Well, a month later, your dog then also dies, so you’re sad about it, but your friend doesn’t reach out to you. That is how it would feel to be taken for granted. It is a feeling I wish upon nobody, though I am sure I have before. More than likely we all have in one way or another, as taking someone for granted does not only apply in the one way I have described. There are too many for me to list, and frankly I am struggling to find a list that is not putting it into romantic relationship terms, so I suppose you’ll just have to do your own Google search (no easy link today). Anyway, this links back to my point of not taking people for granted (duh, what else) as not only might you live to regret it, it also is a miserable experience for the other person.

Will all of that said, I would like to end this post on a more positive note. We did make it another year, and I said before, that is something we should all be proud of. We didn’t give up; we persevered and pushed through. I know for me personally this year was incredibly hard, but I’m still standing, and so are you. So let’s celebrate! Pop open the champagne, put those party hats on, and find yourself a pretty girl to kiss. 2026 here we come.

(And in the spirit of not taking people for granted, here’s Auld Lang Syne)