Tara sauntered into the bank as she talked on her cell phone. She was chatting with her friend Lucy who just got back from a trip to Paris. Her friend talked on and on about all the places and people she had seen. It was a trip that her dad took her on for her 18th birthday.
When Tara walked in there was a long line for the teller. She was annoyed and got into line with an attitude. As she stood in line, she looked around at the different people that stood restlessly in line. Everyone was in a bad mood, couldn't wait to get through the line, and get on with their day.
Suddenly a shot rang out and everyone in the bank jumped. A man's voice rang out in the bank saying, "Get down!"
Tara and the rest of the bank customers obeyed and got down on the floor. The bank robbers went to the tellers and demanded all the money. The tellers cooperated and placed the money into the big black trash bags the robbers shoved into their faces.
Next to Tara was a young girl about 12 or 13. She was shaking and whimpering uncontrollably. On the other side of Tara was an older woman who looked about 80. She was turned toward Tara and tears rolled down her face.
The young girl who laid next to her grabbed Tara's hand and whispered, "I don't want to die."
Tara looked at the girl with fear in her eyes. She hadn't even thought about dying. Could this turn deadly? There are so many things that she wanted to do like finishing college or just declaring a major.
The girl closed her eyes and began to whimper. Tara quietly told the girl, "Shhhh. We need to stay quiet." She squeezed the girls hand firmly and said, "It's going to be okay."
Tara didn't know if the girl believed her, but she opened her eyes and looked at Tara. She was even able to nod at Tara and give her a little smile.
As Tara laid on the floor and held the young girls hand, she thought about her mom, Jen, and her dad, Ed. They didn't always get along, but she wanted to spend more time with them. Lately, she was so obsessed with her friends and parties that she didn't spend enough time with them.
Her parents were two extremely successful people. Her mom was a pediatrician and had her own practice. She worked hard as a pediatrician, but she always encouraged and spent time with Tara when she was growing away.
Tara's dad was also successful. He was an architect that built the most expensive buildings in the city. His father recently went back to school to get a doctorate. He, along with her mother, nagged Tara about school and getting a good education. They wanted her to take her life seriously and make something of herself.
Instead of listening to her parents, Tara goofed off with friends shopping and going to parties. She lived the good life with the money her parents worked hard to make. The truth was that she didn't deserve the good life and took advantage of her parents. Now, she didn't know if she would ever get a chance to tell them how much she appreciated them and all they did for her or tell them how much she loved them.
One of the bank robbers interrupted her thoughts. He yelled out to the customers, "Count to one hundred and then get up!" With that the bank robbers left. Tara looked up and saw three figures running out of the bank. She could only hear her heart pounding inside of her chest.
A man in a tacky Hawaiian shirt got up slowly off the floor and said in a shaky voice, "I think they are gone."
Everyone started to get up slowly. Tara got up and turned to help the young girl up. She then turned to the older lady and helped her get up. The older lady's legs were trembling, but she was able to get up off the floor. Tara led her to a chair where she could sit down while she telephoned her daughter to come pick her up. She didn't want to go home alone.
Tara watched as police men streamed into the bank with guns. The security officer put his hands up and explained to the officers that the robbers were gone. They put their guns away and started to investigate the robbery. After a while the police led all the bank customers out of the bank.
Once Tara was out of the bank, she called her mom and found out that both her mom and dad were at work. She called a cab and went straight to her parent's home. Although they weren't there, she wanted be there when they came home.
Tara did what most of us do. She didn't make the most of her life. When she had a chance to advance her career, develop stronger ties with her family and friends, or give back to the community, she did something fun or for herself, instead. Although it is okay to have fun, it is important that we discover the purpose for our life through personal development and education.
Tara has struggled with feelings of uselessness. People have warned Tara about wasting her life, and they encouraged her to make something great of herself. As she laid on the floor during the bank robbery, she got it. All of a sudden she understood what she needed to do. She didn't want to die without accomplishing something important, and that didn't include going from one party to the next.
After her parents got home from work, Tara told them about her experience at the bank. They were happy to know that she was alright, but there was something that had changed about their daughter. She was talking about declaring a major, and she wanted to volunteer at the community center. At the community center, she wanted to tutor the students in the after school program.
Of course, we do not have to wait until a bank robbery to learn this same lesson. Making our life count means that we find out what our purpose is and create goals that will help us create our dream life. Sometimes, we need to make small changes that move us toward our purpose, or sometimes we need to make bigger changes. If you can't quite your job, you can still work on moving toward a new career by researching the new career or taking college or community classes that will expose you to that career. In Tara's case, she simply needed to declare her major and start working on her career. Little changes in our lives can add up to big changes in the end.
This Week's Challenge: Let every moment of your life count. If you are not doing what you want to do and feel miserable, then start to do the one thing that makes you happy. For example, if you are working retail and you don't life your job, then figure out what would make you happy and fulfilled. It could be that you want to go into advertising. Start researching what you need to do to go into advertising. Next, take classes that would help you to get into the advertisement. When you are doing what makes you happy, you are more likely to have increased confidence and better relationships with friends and families.