“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.” – Dr. Seuss
Today happened to be one of those challenging days.
The kind that drains you. Makes you tired, unaware, exhausted—defeated.
Nothing seems to go your way.
And so, I sat down with my pen,
Trying to find something to write,
But my mind was blank.
As I sat there, I started to reflect on the week.
And then, I thought about my children.
Their little milestones, the way they grow each day,
And a recent experience I shared with them.
There’s an old Vietnamese quote that I grew up hearing:
“Một ngày làm cha, cả đời làm cha. Nhưng có khi, con là thầy của cha mẹ.”
"One day as a father, a lifetime as a father. But sometimes, children are the teachers of their parents."
Today proved that to be true in the most unexpected way.
Me and my wife took our kids to the zoo.
Our youngest—just one year old—was seeing wild animals up close for the first time.
Our oldest had been looking forward to this trip for a month.
He talked about it nearly every day.
But while we were there, I found myself constantly checking my phone.
Watching the time.
Trying to make sure everything was on track.
Then my son turned to me and asked,
"Why do you keep looking at your phone?"
And I said,
"I just want to make sure we have enough time to get everything done today."
He looked at me and said something so simple,
But it stopped me in my tracks:
"But we waited the whole month to go to the zoo. Why do you want to go home?”
Right then, I realized…
I was living in the mindset of the old me.
Letting the moment slip away,
All while pretending I was “there” for them.
But I wasn’t really present.
He was right.
He had been dreaming about this trip.
And now that the day had come, I was half-assing it.
Focused more on time than on the memory we were making.
So I put the phone away.
I let the schedule go.
And decided this day would belong entirely to them.
And because of that shift, we were gifted with a magical moment—
A giant elephant stepped into the water and began performing playful tricks.
Spraying water. Splashing around.
It was beautiful.
It was real.
And we would’ve missed it if I had stuck to the plan.
How many moments like that will I get?
None of us know.
We live life like we have forever—
But no one does. Not the rich. Not the poor.
Some of us spend our time chasing legacy.
Trying to be remembered. Trying to be immortalized.
But we miss the present in that pursuit.
Pushing my children in a little wagon past lions, giraffes, and playful seals,
I felt the sun on my face,
The laughter of my family in my ears,
And I knew...
This is enough.
This is life.
I’ll walk with them for as long as I can.
And if my time comes sooner than expected, I’ll be okay.
Because I was there when it mattered.
Yes, thinking about death might sound grim.
But it’s taken me a long time to see it differently.
When I feared death, I didn’t live.
But now that I’ve accepted it, I feel awake for the first time in a long time.
I’ve stopped living for the world’s approval.
Because I’ve found my peace,
And I’ve found it in the ones who hold my hands the tightest—my children.
So the next time you're blessed with one of these little moments—
Stop.
Take a breath.
Live, and live your life fully.
Not just for yourself, but for those who went ahead.
Because sometimes, the ones we’re supposed to teach…
Are the ones here to teach us.
“We don’t remember days, we remember moments.” – Cesare Pavese