Every year on the anniversary of #DDay, French citizens take sand from Omaha Beach and rub it onto the gravestones of fallen soldiers who gave their lives to liberate Europe.
It gives the letters a golden shine.
They do this for all 9,386 American soldiers buried there.
Jerry Seinfeld was asked about Father’s Day.
Does he do anything special to celebrate?
Any specific festivities with his kids?
You’d expect Seinfeld, a legendary comedian, to respond with a funny quip about being a dad.
But he didn’t.
Seinfeld said:
“I don’t need any special days. They’re all special. We spend a lot of time together, and I enjoy every second of it.”
In just a few seconds, Seinfeld shared a few profound lessons:
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Lesson 1: Find joy in the ordinary
We tend to glamorize extraordinary events.
• Lavish vacations
• Getting a dream job
• Winning a championship
But those events are a tiny part of our lives.
Truth is, most of our days are ordinary.
“I’m a believer in the ordinary and mundane,” Seinfeld says.
There’s joy in ordinary.
There’s satisfaction in doing the mundane.
***
Lesson 2: Relish the “garbage” time
Seinfeld doesn’t believe in “quality time.”
It's a myth he thinks it misses the whole point.
“I always find that a little sad when [parents] say, ‘We have quality time,’” Seinfeld said. “I don’t want quality time. I want the garbage time.”
• Playing in the backyard
• Looking for birds at the park
• Watching a movie on the couch
This is “garbage” time as parent.
It’s the absolute best time there is.
***
Lesson 3: Eat late-night Cheerios
It’s easy to get on the treadmill of life.
Caught up in your goals and routines.
But sometimes, we need to break the rules.
Here’s how Seinfeld described garbage time with his kids:
“You see them in their room reading a comic book and you get to watch that for a minute, or [having] a bowl of Cheerios at 11 o’clock at night when they’re not even supposed to be up. The garbage, that’s what I love.”
It’s a beautiful description of what being a parent — and live in general — is like.
There are these little moments that happen every day, but we’re often too busy to notice them.
We get consumed with our goals and aspirations.
We stay busy trying to optimize every second of the day.
We don’t allow ourselves to eat the late-night Cheerios.
***
"Quality time" is a myth.
All time is a blessing.
It's up to us find joy in the ordinary and make the most of every day.
***
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Baseball parents:
Recent changes to the MLB Draft & the reduction of minor league teams have affected the landscape of youth baseball and college recruiting.
I have a swipe file with all the details.
Retweet and comment "Send" and I'll DM you a copy ⚾
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Good evening please join us tonight Wednesday September 28 for our first General meeting of the year. We will be meeting in the Dracut High cafeteria at 6:30pm. Hope to see everyone there.
The boys are working… @JakePynn2 is slide 4. New team, new experiences & adventures to be had; same desire, work ethic & love for the game. Go get ‘Em kid!!! ❤️ #hawkssoarhigher https://t.co/2LU1y5Tv4y
If you met yourself outside of social media, would you admire the real, authentic version of you? Not the version you portray to the world through the eyes of Twitter, Facebook, etc, but the you that looks back in the mirror every day. Those two people should be one in the same!