Last year, I had a minor health issue. Minor in the grand scheme of things. But when it’s your body and your life, nothing feels minor. What started as a discomfort turned out to be a more chronic version of acid reflux, the kind with an acronym—GERD. It wasn’t life-threatening, but it has a big impact on the quality of my life.
It forced a shift in how I think about time.
I’ve always been fairly healthy. I exercise. I eat reasonably well. I sleep enough. I check all the boxes. But when something like this pops up out of nowhere—and refuses to go away—you realise how fragile your health really is. Not in an abstract way. In a daily, can’t-ignore-it kind of way.
Before this, I’d assumed I had time. Not in the philosophical sense—we all know life is short—but in the lazy, everyday kind of way. “I’ll do that next year.” “When things settle down.” “After this busy period.” I didn’t question those assumptions. But this health scare made them feel ridiculous.
Because the truth is, the healthy years are short.
You don’t get unlimited time when you’re energetic, mobile, and pain-free. In your 20s, you feel invincible. In your 30s, you start noticing things. In your 40s, you probably manage around them. After that, it’s a negotiation. And these transitions happen quietly. There’s no announcement. One day you just realise, this doesn’t work like it used to.
So now, if there’s something I want to do—and I can do it—I try to do it now. Not because I’m afraid I’ll die tomorrow. But because I might not be able to do it next year. Or enjoy it in the same way. The “someday” bucket is getting smaller. And honestly, it should.
Urgency doesn’t mean rushing. It means choosing now over later by default.
There’s a misconception that urgency is a kind of panic—like you’re running from something. But that’s not how I experience it. It’s more like clarity. If you knew you had one year of full health left, how would you act? That’s urgency. It’s not fear-based. It’s focus-based.
This mindset shift isn’t about bucket lists or travel hacks. It’s about small decisions. Saying yes to a trip now instead of waiting until it’s more “convenient.” Starting the project, writing the post, recording the memory—because what are you really waiting for?
Of course, I still plan for the future – a lot. But I try not to postpone life for it.
There’s a Japanese concept I came across recently, mono no aware—an awareness of the impermanence of things. It doesn’t make you sad. It makes you present. I think urgency is like that. It makes you look at life and think, this is finite, and that’s why it matters.
Most of us wait for some wake-up call to start living like that. Mine just came as a quiet, persistent discomfort in my chest. Annoying, but oddly helpful.
I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. But looking at the bright side, I’m happy that it flipped a switch for me.
Memos by Sooraj 