Your Perfect Year(57)

“You’re forgetting that he’s just been told he has a terminal illness.”

“No, I’m not forgetting it. I’ll come to that later. Can I go on?”

“Sorry. Yes, of course!”

“So, I’ve been wondering how I can get Simon to rediscover more joy in his life. And the answer’s obvious: he has to live more. That’s all! Simon needs to move.”

“How? If I understood correctly, right now he’s planning his own funeral. It’s probably not the best moment to tell him that he’s damn well got to start enjoying life.”

“Wrong!”

“Wrong?”

“It’s the best possible moment. What time could be more appropriate than when your own mortality is staring you in the face? When you’re given a blindingly clear reminder that none of us lives forever?”

“You think so?”

Hannah nodded energetically. “Absolutely.”

“So what exactly is your plan?”

“I’m going to write out a diary for him.”

“A diary?”

“Yes!” Hannah nodded again. “I’m going to start today. I’ll plan Simon’s year for him, think up a whole range of lovely dates, appointments, and things for him to do.”

“You mean you’re going to dictate what he should do for the whole year?”

“What do you mean, ‘dictate’? They’ll be suggestions. Three hundred sixty-five ideas, one for every day!” Her words almost tripped over themselves in her excitement. “I’m going to show him tracks into the future.”

“Tracks into the future?”

“Yes,” Hannah said.

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s a really simple principle. When you lay down tracks into the future, you behave as though whatever you wish for has already come true today.”

“I still don’t get it.”

“A practical example: You buy a pair of pants in size six, although your size is eight—because you want to lose weight until the smaller size fits you. By already buying something that will fit you, you’re laying down tracks to the future.”

“Uh-huh.”

“It really is that simple! Our energy is guided by the focus of our attention,” she said, telling Lisa what she believed from the innermost depths of her heart. “So when we turn our thoughts to what we want, the probability of attaining it is so much greater than if we’re constantly wrestling with what we don’t actually want. In that case, we’re focusing our attention on precisely what we don’t want to happen.”

“Excuse me, but if I’m understanding you correctly, your logic would make it foolish to fasten your seat belt when you get in the car.”

“My turn—you’ve lost me.”

“It’s obvious: if I fasten my seat belt, I’m laying the track into the future that says an accident could happen.”

“That’s not how it works,” Hannah said with irritation. “Laying a track into the future doesn’t mean I’ve completely lost my mind and intend to cheerfully jump from the roof because I believe I can fly.”

“That’s a shame.”

“Stupid woman!”

“Stupid woman yourself!”

Hannah couldn’t suppress a giggle. “For someone who embraced self-employment on the basis of what a psychic said, you’re being a touch critical!”

“Life adviser,” Lisa corrected. “Anyway, I’m only trying to see things from Simon’s perspective, giving you advance notice of his possible objections. Personally, I’d find such a diary an excellent idea—but we’re not talking about me.”

“Whatever he might say, I’m going to do it anyway! Simon believes he may not even have a year left to live—so I’m presenting him with the next year, laying down his tracks into the future, so that he has down in black and white all that he has to look forward to. It kind of means it’s not possible to die his way out of it, since the diary leaves him no space to do that!” Her enthusiasm was returning.

“I don’t want to take the wind out of your sails,” Lisa said, once again playing devil’s advocate, “but do you seriously believe he’ll be open to something like that right now?”

“As I said, this moment is particularly appropriate.”

“Your plan is all well and good, and it even sounds logical—but there’s a massive difference between theory and practice. And everyone’s different. One person discovers they’re about to depart . . .” She paused with a small “Sorry.”

“Doesn’t matter, go on!”

“Well, one person discovers they’ll soon be kicking the bucket and that makes them really go for it, like you would. But there are others who shut themselves off entirely.”

Hannah didn’t reply but simply stared at Lisa.

“Did I say something wrong?”

“No,” Hannah replied thoughtfully, her brow creased. Then she beamed at Lisa. “On the contrary!” she exclaimed. “You’ve said something wonderful!”

“Have I?”

“Yes. A bucket list—that’s what the diary should be!”