Hey Pandas, What's An Experience That Changed Your Perspective On Life? (Closed)

30 October 2015. I was planning to go in a club for a rock concert, but I was overworked and exhausted. I gave up and went to sleep. Next morning I found out that a terrible fire had broken out in the club. About 300 people were trapped inside, as only one exit was available: no fire extinguishers, no sprinklers, no escape. 65 people died in total and more than 100 had severe burns. It was a national tragedy.

It totally changed my view and attitude toward safety measures, selfcare and life in general. Now I avoid going to places that I know to be unsafe (very old, unrestored buildings). I check for emergency exits & extinguishers; I usually choose a seat at the end of the row. I signed up for a Red Cross course to refresh my knowledge on first aid. I started going to gym regularly, changed my diet and lost weight.

And in general, I try to enjoy the moment, because "now" is all we have.

Life is a miracle... but in a few seconds, everything can be lost.

On October 4th, 2020, I woke up deaf. Due to Meniere's, I had already lost most of the hearing in my right year so I knew losing the hearing in the left was a real possibility. I started having a "flare" in my left year late in the afternoon before Friday, Oct. 3rd and because I'd gone through this before felt I could wait until Monday to get to the ENT. The next morning, my hearing was gone and once it's gone, there is no getting it back. If I could do it again, I'd demand my ENT stay in the office until I could get there to provide an inter-tympanic steroid injection; he agrees this very likely would have prevented the hearing loss. I'm very grateful for the two Cochlear Implant surgeries I've had; this has impacted every aspect of my life.

September 11th, 2001. I used to work at the Pentagon until that spring, and I lost friends in the attack. Another one of my friends lost his whole family on one of the planes, and he unalived himself a few weeks later. It did make me want revenge sure, but that emotion passes quickly. But what it really did was cement in me the reality that none of us are here for long, and whatever your plans are, you should focus on the present and on the people in your life. If you have something to say to your loved ones, say it now. You may not get the chance to tomorrow. To this day, I tell my children I love them every night. I call my parents just to chat, because who knows if that will be the last time.

For better and worse. Having my heart broken. After my long time girlfriend broke up with me I went into a deep depression during which I became addicted to d***s and alcohol in an attempt to dull the pain. When it didnt work anymore I decided to quit. Then I went back to school finished 2 associates degrees as an A student and went on to get a bachelors degree while getting into the best shape of my life. 10 years into my career I'm no longer in great shape but I have the income to travel and enjoy my hobbies.

I had a heart attack New Year’s Eve weekend. 4 years ago exactly. In middle of pandemic. Bad family history on both sides. Very sobering experience. I am slim fit athletic non-drinker never smoked. It happens. F76

when i first watched jaiden animations video "being not straight". at the time, I was a bit of a homophobe, mainly because of my mom. after watching it, 13 year old me was like "..was I wrong? why was I so hateful? they did nothing wrong!" and over time I started to look more into LGBT, and when I was about 14, I figured out that I was demisexual, demiromantic, and trans demiboy(I also started to use the pronouns he/they/it). and when I was 15 I figured out that I was also gay and frayplatonic.

I'm so glad my best friend showed me Jaiden animations, otherwise I would probably still be a homophobic piece of $hit

The death of a parent. In my case, both parents. There's nothing that prepares you, and there is always a space that will never be filled again. Even though the grief is so painful, it's taught me the value of time. Everyone says that we are not guaranteed tomorrow, but losing my parents really made that hit home to me. Life is too unpredictable, too short, to sell yourself deficit on your life. Go towards what brings you joy, what makes you happy as an individual, and don't let anyone tell you its stupid, or it's crazy, it's going to upset the apple cart, or it's not practical. Life is too short to not go towards the things we love.

My friend (I will call him X) recently told me his feelings about me were more than just as a friend, it was that he was attracted to me and asked if I would be his SO. At that moment, I knew that most people would feel romantic attraction towards someone who liked them, I guess (everyone is different) but it was like I was behind a wall. I didn't feel a THING. It's not unusual for me. I experience alexethymia, which means I can't express, or in my case, even really feel emotions very strongly. Sometimes I don't feel them at all. The bluntness of his question really got me thinking, "Will I ever find an SO one day if I can't feel romantic love?". I think I may find love if I want to, someday, but it's kind of sad to think that I'll struggle hard to do that. Could I try to love an SO back? Would we both be hurt by the fact I can't feel love and just feel this empty gloom?

Epilogue: I told X I wanted to be just friends. We still are