#2 - "The Tail End" by Tim Urban
This essay fundamentally changed how I think about time
You’ve heard it a million times… “Life is short”.
Still, Tim Urban’s essay “The Tail End” bopped me over the head the first time I read it. Not only is life short. It’s much, much shorter than I thought.
From the essay:
Let’s be super optimistic and say I’m one of the incredibly lucky people to have both parents alive into my 60s. That would give us about 30 more years of coexistence… 300 days left to hang with mom and dad. Less time than I spent with them in any one of my 18 childhood years.
When you look at that reality, you realize that despite not being at the end of your life, you may very well be nearing the end of your time with some of the most important people in your life.
Thanks to Tim Urban (1) for writing “The Tail End” and fundamentally shifting the way I think about time, and (2) for allowing me to turn it into a video. I hope you’ll watch the full thing (just 8 mins):
LINKS
Tim Urban runs maybe the most popular blog on the internet, “Wait But Why”. He’s known for combining witty stick-figure illustrations with deep dives into subjects like AI, how to pick a romantic partner, and the possibility of alien life.
You should subscribe to his blog and follow him on Twitter at @waitbutwhy.
As always, I welcome feedback on everything I can do to improve the experience for episode #3. Audio, video, art, music, animations, the way I read the essay. Nothing is off limits. Please tell me what you think. The good and the bad.
Thanks for listening!
-Jonathan