Friday was my lucky day. (Or so everybody kept telling me.)
The sun was shining, life was beautiful.
On my way home from a perfect paddle (I was the only one in the water – apart from the pretty assortment of jellyfish. The visibility was exceptional and the gentle swell pulsing through kept the balancing act exciting. It was also hot enough to enjoy the picturesque landscapes in a bikini), I stopped and bought myself a lottery ticket. (So far, on the rare occasion when I have purchased them, they have been as gifts for other people).
The cashier assured me it was the winning ticket.
I believed her.
You know that stock standard question: What would you do if you won the lottery?
Where would you go?
What would you buy?
Who would you become?
How would you change your life?
I pondered these things on Sunday, as Lagos delivered another perfectly sunny December day.
I went on a little cycling adventure and clambered down to my favourite beach.
I was exactly where I wanted to be. I chose this city as my home.
I have a life full of beautiful people.
And a place where I can live out most of the passions that set my soul on fire.
If I won the lottery, I would still choose to live here.
I want EVERY area of my life to feel like I have won the lottery, too.
When I start dating again, I want to look over at the hunk of awesome man next to me and feel like I am the luckiest girl in the world to have him in my life. I want him to feel the same about me.
When I start working again (win the lottery or not, you have to invest your time into something), I want to do something that sets my soul on fire. I want to wake up super excited to get going. I want to do the things that I was born to do.
I want more adventures and, even more so, I want the tools needed (like a sailing boat and a handful of qualifications, and other “toys”) so that I can bring out the adventurous spirit in others, too. I decided that whether I had won the lottery or not, I needed to start working towards this.
If you know where you are going and you start moving, you will eventually arrive. No matter how slowly you progress.
I cycled back into town and handed the same cashier my ticket.
“I won the lottery,” I told her.
She smiled back and took my ticket.
She hesitated as she tried to find the words to tell me that I was wrong.
But I was still smiling. Simply being alive is the best prize imaginable.
(Just to be clear, my ticket was not the winning one. But I have DEFINITELY won at life. And I have no doubt that if you take a step back and appreciate your own life, you will find that you have too!)
