Blog by Lata Advani Viseu

“No one gets to keep the years
They only get to spend them well
So stop guarding what you’re afraid to lose
And start living like today already has a story to tell
Make it spectacular
Not some day, today
Because we don’t have long here”
Make It Spectacular – Kimo Sounds

As time goes on, I realize more and more how true that is, and how deeply family and friends shape our life. When your family lives in another country, your friends become your everyday lifeline, the ones who fill the silence, share the laughter, and make the ordinary moments feel extraordinary.

No amount of money or a beautiful faraway place can replace the closeness of friendship. The happiest memories aren’t tied to luxury, they’re tied to people. They’re the road trips, the birthday dinners, the backyard BBQs, the evenings spent chatting, reminiscing, dreaming about a future where we all live close by, or escape Toronto winters together in some warm corner of the world.

Our children grow up, move away, and build their own lives. They remain in our hearts, but they’re meant to walk their own paths.

My family is scattered across cities and continents, thousands of miles away. And yet, I’m lucky, because life brought me a core group of friends who grew up in the same beautiful town of Shillong. We didn’t know each other back then, but Toronto brought us together, and they became my chosen family.

As the years pass, we seem to cling to each other more, finding excuses to meet almost every weekend, as if we’re all quietly aware that time is slipping by and we want to make the most of it.

I’ve seen people spend their lives chasing careers, bigger houses, and material things. In the process, their relationships faded. They wound down alone, no spouse, distant children, and a life full of achievements but empty of connection. They forgot to nurture what truly matters.

I can say, with a full heart, that I’m living a rich life surrounded by amazing people who mean the world to me. Friends who have walked with me through good times and hard times, friends who support me, feed me, inspire me, and remind me every day that joy is found in togetherness.

We don’t get to keep the years,
but we do get to spend them well,
and I’m spending mine with people who make life spectacular.

Quotes

“It is not the length of life, but the depth of life.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.” – C.S. Lewis

“We do not remember days, we remember moments.” – Cesare Pavese

“In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.” – Kahlil Gibran

www.mindvasana.com