Screw It, Let's Do It by Richard Branson

Author:Richard Branson
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Non Fiction, Autobiography, Done, Warez Science, Business
Published: 2006-01-01T13:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6 - LIVE THE MOENT

Love Life and Live It To The full

Enjoy the Moment

Reflect on your Life

Make Every Second Count

Don't Have Regrets

IT WAS 1997. I was in a round the World hot-air balloon race. Before I left, I wrote a long letter to my children, in case I didn't return. I started the letter by saying, 'Dear Holly and Sam, Life can seem rather unreal at times. Alive and Well and loving one day. No longer there the next. As you both know I always had the urge to live life to its full...'

I wrote the letter just in case the worst happened. We had taken off at dawn from Marrakech in Morocco. Twelve hours later, it seemed as if we were about to crash in flames into the Atlas Mountains. They say a dying man relives his life in his final seconds. For me, this was not true. All I thought was that, if I escaped with my life, I would never do this again. We fought hard all night to keep the balloon up. By dawn, we were over the desert, where we could come down safely.

As we drifted to earth I sat up on the glass roof of the capsule, watching the beauty of the golden dawn as it broke over the desert. This was a day I never thought I'd see and the rising sun and growing warmth of the day seemed very precious. It made me aware that hard-won things are more valuable than those that come too easily. It reminded me to always enjoy the moment.

I love balloons to such an extent that I have one of my own. It's a small balloon with a wicker basket, like the one in Around the world in Eighty Days. I often take family and friends up in it. It is one of the most peaceful places I know. It makes me feel at one with nature. You glide silently along, away from the rest of the world. No one can phone you, no one can stop you. You are free. You look down on towns and fields and people who don't know you're there.

You can fly nest to a wild swan and hear the beat of its wings. You can look into the eyes of an eagle.

Balloons have taught me to reflect more. On earth, my life is fast and hectic, each moment full. It can be too busy. We all need our own space and it's good to pause and do nothing.

It gives us time to think. It recharges our bodies as well as our minds. I often think of the fishermen I watched that Christmas in Japan. It's in our nature to strive - so I wondered what they looked for in life? They seemed content fishing and feeding their families. They didn't seem driven to set up fish-canning empires. As far as I knew, they didn't want to cross the pacific in a balloon or climb Mount Everest. They took each day as it came.

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