[00:06.07]It was June 15, and in two days I would be turning thirty.
[00:10.64]I was insecure about entering a new decade of my life and feared that my best years were now behind me.
[00:17.94]My daily routine included going to the gym for a workout before going to work.
[00:22.84]Every morning I would see my friend Nicholas at the gym.
[00:26.33]He was seventy-nine years old and in terrific shape.
[00:29.92]As I greeted Nicholas on this particular day,
[00:33.62]he noticed I wasn’t full of my usual vitality and asked if there was anything wrong.
[00:39.92]I told him I was feeling anxious about turning thirty.
[00:43.19]I wondered how I would look back on my life once I reached Nicholas’s age,
[00:48.10]so I asked him, “What was the best time of your life?”
[00:51.47]Without hesitation, Nicholas replied, “Well, Joe, this is my philosophical answer to your philosophical question:
[01:00.18]“When I was a child in Austria and everything was taken care of for me and I was nurtured by my parents,
[01:07.15]that was the best time of my life.
[01:09.98]“When I was going to school and learning the things I know today, that was the best time of my life.
[01:17.39]“When I got my first job and had responsibilities and got paid for my efforts, that was the best time of my life.
[01:25.77]“When I met my wife and fell in love, that was the best time of my life.
[01:30.89]“The Second World War came, and my wife and I had to flee Austria to save our lives.
[01:36.88]When we were together and safe on a ship bound for North America, that was the best time of my life.
[01:44.61]“When we came to Canada and started a family, that was the best time of my life.
[01:50.40]“When I was a young father, watching my children grow up, that was the best time of my life.
[01:57.95]“And now, Joe, I am seventy-nine years old.
[02:01.56]I have my health, I feel good and I am in love with my wife just as I was when we first met.
[02:08.45]This is the best time of my life.”