Hello my friend. Stay awhile and listen
Deckard Cain
With those words, the legacy was Diablo is born. The untested adventurer begins his or her journey to become a champion. Quests are completed, abilities increase, the character levels up. They change or save the world.
With the release of Diablo Immortal on iOS, I’ve been spending a lot of time back in the world of Diablo. It’s been great and a lot of fun. Apart from bringing back a feeling of nostalgia (the memory of the dial-up modem buzzing, lagging out with friends on a boss fight, endless conversations at school during lunch), it’s great to be playing a franchise that I enjoyed so much once again (and as an aside, in exciting news, Diablo IV is confirmed for a 2023 release). The Diablo series are linear games. Open your quest log or codex, see what is required next, and go and do it. Level up your character along the way, upgrade your gear, learn new spells, defeat the next monster.
Life is not like that. We have many different options and choices available to us. Lots of different things competition for our time and attention. We have our own goals, desires, wants, and interests. So what is it exactly that we should be spending our time on? What should I be doing more of?
It’s a question I’m always pondering, and one where the answer shifts as I move through different chapters (or, to keep with the gaming theme, undertake new quests 🗡). It covers the full range of life and obligations – towards my family, my career, my interests, my friends, and how to manage time to do everything.
When I came back from my travels, I had a lot of different perspectives. It was natural given I’d been fortunately to spend time in a lot of different places, and see and experience things outside of the day-to-day of Brisbane life. I was more mellow and calm, more understanding, and also sure on what my focus would be on. That focus turned to outdoor education, and I was able to turn that into a job that lasted a few years. COVID-19 hit and in some ways things paused. As an example, I ought to have been continuing to journal like I did on my travels, but I just lost all of the energy to do so.
If a man knows not to which port he sails, no wind is favourable
Seneca
This passage caused me to pause when I read it. It ties back to my general thinking. Which port should I be heading to? What should I be doing and not doing to get there?
I have known for a long time my essential pillars for life. Family, Connections, Health, Work, Adventure. I’ve even outlined my ideal day. Now I need to make sure that the ship we are on is heading for the right port. We set the destination a while ago. Are we on track? Has the wind blown us off course?
Right now it’s the smaller things that have my attention. Let’s take health. I go to the gym five days a week. I climb at least one night a week. I foam roll and stretch most mornings. I eat well. It seems like the health pillar is sorted. But I know I should be doing more. I should lift harder. I should stretch in the evening too. I should do more cardio throughout the day as I am seated at my desk for so long. I should stand and do squats when I watch TV rather than laying on the couch. I should sit on the ground more and work on my hip flexibility. All of these oughts.
Cleaning is another one. I know I need to clean the blinds. Realistically, that’s just not going to happen. I’m happy to mop, even vacuum. There’s something about the blinds. But should I be cleaning them? That depends on what it is that you want. We are fortunate to be in a position where we have healthy finances. Perhaps getting a cleaner is the way to go, to outsource some tasks so then I can focus on other things? I think so. It’s the same with mowing – I’ve already organised for that to happen. What can we outsource, and what should we be doing less of? TV and games comes to mind, although I won’t be getting rid of these. I love watching anime and AEW. I love to immerse myself in a role-playing game and see my character level up and make choices. I do, however, need to make sure it doesn’t take too much of my time, and that it doesn’t take place late at night so it effects my sleep. That’s important to me too.
This is never a one-and-done type of thought or activity. It will change over time and undergo further updates. We’ll level up. Circumstances will also change this as well. With luck we will have children, and as parents, what we should be doing will change as we will be focusing a lot of time on little ones. Same goes with pets too.
So we go back to daily habits and events. How do I build these things into my day to make sure I am doing what I ought to do, and have the time, ability and attention to linger on what’s important?
It’s a work in progress. For one, it’s limiting screen time at night to get better sleep. It’s spending more time writing and thinking as I’m doing now. I’s getting the outsourcing finalised so we don’t have to do the chores we don’t want to do. It’s building the new habits of flossing my teeth before bed, going for an extra walk during the day, and making sure I do more light stretching when watching anime. Importantly, it’s taking the time to remain present, and not using each moment as an opportunity to think about the past or future when there is plenty in the right now to enjoy. Life is great, and I am grateful each day for where I am.