Q

Anonymous asked:

What's a word for the feeling you get when you know you'll never be in this same place & same situation again? Not really wistfulness or nostalgia, but something more specific to that feeling.

A

word-stuck:

ichi-go ichi-e (一期一会)

(n. Japanese)

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lit.“one time, one meeting”; often translated as ”for this time only”, “never again”, or ”one chance in a lifetime

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an encounter that only happens once in a lifetime, reminding us to treasure every moment, for it will never recur

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In the context of Japanese tea ceremony, “一期一会” reminds participants that each single tea meeting is unique that will never recur in one’s lifetime, therefore, each moment should be treated with the utmost sincerity.

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All we have is today, so let’s live it to the fullest.”

I know this feeling so well. To be in a moment you might wish would last forever but instead you know, as it’s happening, that it will never happen again.

I’m reminded of the Hirokazu Koreeda film After Life. The characters have to choose one moment–just one moment–from their lives to carry with them into what lies beyond.