June 2026 Update To Original Blog Post Below This:
For years now, this blog post has been one of the most visited pages of our website. I guess there’s a lot of us out there that want to make sure we don’t hold off until tomorrow to do the things we want or should do today! I’m 12 years older and wiser than I was when I first wrote and published the blog post below. And, there’s something new I wanted to add to my bulleted list below, based on mistakes I’ve made or seen family members or friends make that impacts one’s ability to “carpe diem,” and truly “seize the day.” So, check out the new bullet in blue!
Original Post:
I’m not yet ready to break out all my fall sweaters on this Friday before the long weekend — one that signals that summer will soon be on its way and we’ll need to dress for crisper, cooler air. In keeping with my post headline and being a New Englander, I plan to savor the warm days and nights of summer and all the season brings for as long as I can.
However, this post and the motto that I live by warranted my modeling a favorite sweater of mine. Thank you Banana Republic!
I’m such a big fan of both the phrase (and the color orange :)) that I eagerly scoffed up sweaters for me and my twin, Audrey, with this phrase, and wore it to work on some casual Fridays to inspire my former marcom team.
Audrey and I love to say that we are “carpe dieming” and regularly encourage friends and family to do so, being two of six siblings who have known our share of health-related hardship — three of us have battled cancer and now deal with the long lasting impact of treatment, and two live with the day-to-day challenges of multiple sclerosis (MS). Through all the great energy they bring to both their personal and work lives, I witness all the time the great awareness the Snow family siblings have of the importance of seizing every day and living each day to its fullest. And, I see this sentiment repeated over and over in a sarcoma discussion group that I participate in — whether it be voiced by current cancer patients, cancer survivors, or their caregivers and loved ones.
Given the fact that Americans, and perhaps, individuals throughout a lot of the world, think of September as a time of new beginnings and opportunities, I thought this was the perfect time to update and publish this post that I had drafted, but then put aside, several weeks ago.
To me, carpe dieming means:
1) Not putting off until tomorrow, what you can, should, or want to do today — whether it’s fun- or work-related.
2) Taking action towards your goals TODAY — whether they be to eat right, exercise, have more fun, visit more with friends or relatives, start your own business, or launch a new project.
3) Finding good in, appreciating, and enjoying every day.
4) Participating in life’s simple pleasures and acknowledging that the best things in life are, indeed, free.
5) Not over-focusing on “saving for a rainy day” to the detriment of doing enjoyable things today.
6) “Staying in your own lane,” and not thinking about what others are doing or are NOT doing. Or, how you compare to and/or need to compete with or keep up with others. We each only get one life, so “don’t spend your life living someone else’s life,” as Steve Jobs is noted for saying. Spend it doing the things that are important to you!
I’d love to hear what Carpe Dieming means to you. Regardless, I hope you’ll seize this long weekend and make it the best ever, and if you haven’t seen it, check out this tribute to Robin Williams related to the important message he shared with his students in “Dead Poets Society”.