Firsts are pretty incredible things. They come about when something was never previously done before. We all experience firsts in our lives, to an immeasurable degree. There are the “biggies” which most of us don’t remember. Like, our first steps or our first words.
I don’t know what my first words were, but I imagine they were in the ballpark of, “You’ve got to be kidding.”
We have first communions, first dances, first kisses, first ice cream cones, first swims. And on, and on. In fact, every day is a first. Today is the first March 23, 2021, that I’ve ever been on earth. Now that is something.
Firsts not only happen on a personal level, they occur on a grander stage too. Like the first time, a man went to the moon. Or the first time a photograph was taken. The first nuclear bomb that was dropped. Again, innumerable.
Today has some notable firsts, at least by my standards.
Imagine a world of tall buildings, and all we had were stairs. Now imagine making a living as a furniture mover. Oh, this happened. Until one smart fellow came along and thought about that situation. He said, let’s build a tunnel in a building that goes from the bottom to the top, and let’s put a box in that tunnel, hoist it with a pulley, and away the box will go. Now. Let’s put people in that box. And viola’. The elevator was born. And, of course, the ensuing music.
That is how it went. On this date, March 23, 1857, Elisha Otis installed his first elevator at 488 Broadway in New York City. The prospect of trudging up and down the stairs was removed in that place. Now, people could magically ride up to their desired floor with the push of a button. And it caught on. That first occurrence was a keeper.
The next first also includes motion. Today, March 23, 1929, is the day Roger Bannister was born in Harrow, England. That little baby Bannister would eventually take his first steps. They were probably very quick steps because Bannister was fast. A few years after that, he started running. And he would be the first person to break the four-minute mile mark.
In 1954, Roger Bannister became the first person to run that four-minute mile, recording 3:59:4 at Iffley Road, Oxford.
These days, Hicham El Guerrouj is the current men’s record holder with his time of 3:43.13, while Sifan Hassan has the women’s record of 4:12.33.
When I was in college, I played softball. In pre-season, our coach made us run a seven-minute mile before we could make the team. It was hard, hard, hard. I can’t imagine running that distance in four minutes, ever. Those people have wings, I think.
The next first also covers a distance of sorts. On this date, March 23, 1929, the first telephone was installed at a President’s desk. Herbert Hoover would be the guy to get the first phone at the White House. It hasn’t quit ringing since.
And so, we see some firsts. Which brings me to this. You. Glorious you, is the first “you” ever to grace mankind. There’s never been a you before, and there will not be one after. Trust me.
So everything you do, in every moment, is a first. Yes, each minute is new. Even the mundane act of making peanut butter toast is the first time it’s ever been done, exactly like “that” on this date. As we move through every single day, we should notice all the incredible landmarks we are making. Especially when we do those things with kindness and love in our hearts.
The way you just stapled those papers? Bravo. Brava.
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One mile running times:
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“To begin, begin.”
― William Wordsworth
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“Be willing to be a beginner every single morning.”
― Meister Eckhart
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“The beginning is always today.”
― Mary Shelley
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