Most of us wonder from time to time how to give meaning to some days:

A Lord asked Takuan how he might pass the time, as his days were long in the office,

sitting stiffly to receive the homage of others.

Takuan wrote these 8 Chinese characters and gave them to him:

“Not twice this day

Inch time foot gem

This day will not come again

Each minute is worth a priceless gem”

Takuan Sōhō 1573 –  1645, Japanese Zen Buddhist Master

photo Lorenz Kerscher