It was a cold May morning when I received an email from an old friend inviting me to join a 10-day all-girls surf trip. I knew I had to say yes. The trip seemed simple enough. 10 women aged 30 to 45, all complete strangers, were to meet on the coast of Portugal to try something new: surfing in the Atlantic Ocean. I have always loved traveling, so I eagerly sent an email to my boss asking for time off to make the trip.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over my past 33 years, it’s that adults typically spend their days mastering the things they’ve done before. It seems like we pride ourselves on becoming experts in whatever field we’ve fallen into, knowing more about less. Now, in theory, this is a great strategy, as it allows you to become really good at one particular thing, but it also kind of ends up leaving some skills lacking.

I met my new surfing companions on the grass of the hotel lawn in a small surf town called Ericeira. Despite our different personalities and backgrounds, we were all united in a strong desire to challenge ourselves, learn, tackle and grow.

The shores at Ericeira, where the beginners learn to surf, are shallow and covered with slippery rocks. They make for softer waves but are difficult to ride.

Guided by our amazing coaches, together, we faced the waves. Sometimes, it poured with rain, and the waves crashed around us, but we were still out there. And with every slip and fall, words of encouragement filled the air. Honestly, I probably spent most of my days frozen to the bone, but that didn’t matter because a new level of genuine joy and personal achievement had been unlocked.

Learning a new skill taught me the humility (谦虚) that can come from doing badly at something new, and the pride that develops when you finally manage to grasp something you’ve been working on. While surfing might not be my lifelong passion, trying it out inspired me to take more risks in life. You never know what you’re capable of if you don’t go out there and try.

If you could see a movie of your life before you lived it, would you want to live it? Probably not. The excitement of living is that you don't know what's coming.

Sure, it's hard to see the uncertainty（不确定性）in such a positive light when you're out of work, or when you feel like you're failing. But the uncertainty is really another word for the opportunity.

When Allison graduated from Harvard,she had opportunities all over the place but had no idea what she wanted to do. She took a job in consulting（咨询）but she knew she wouldn't stay there. She took the GRE and scored so high that she was able to increase her income by teaching students. Still, she didn't think she wanted to go to graduate school. Allison knew she wasn't doing what she wanted, but she didn't know what she wanted.

She worried. All her friends were going to graduate school or start their own business. She was lost and felt that she would never find anything out.

After six years, many of her friends who went directly to professional（职业的）school had crises when they graduated because they weren't sure if they had picked the right profession. And Allison, by having a general plan in mind, got married, moved to the Midwest, and used her consulting experience to get a great job.

Allison realized that her years spent being lost were actually just a period during which she was finding her way: time well spent, and time we must all take if we're being honest with ourselves.

The only way to lead an interesting life is to face uncertainties and make choices. Otherwise your life is not your own—it is a path someone else has chosen. Moments of uncertainty are when you create your life, when you become who you are.

Uncertainties usually begin with a job hunt, but they don't end there. Every new role we take on means another round of uncertainty. Instead of fearing them, we are supposed to find some new ways to deal with uncertainties.

I came to love the way Morrie lit up when I entered the room. He did this for many people, I know, but it was his special talent to make each visitor feel the smile was unique.

“Ahhhh, it’s my buddy,” he would say when he saw me, in that foggy, high-pitched voice. And it didn’t stop with the greeting. When Morrie was with you, he was really with you. He looked at you straight in the eye, and he listened as if you were the only person in the world. How much better would people get along if their first encounter each day were like this instead of complaints from a waitress or a bus driver or a boss?

“I believe in being fully present,” Morrie said. “That means you should be with the person you’re with. When I’m talking to you now, Mitch, I try to keep focused only on what is going on between us. I am not thinking about something we said last week. I am not thinking of what’s coming up this Friday. I am not thinking about doing another Koppel show, or about what medications I’m taking.”

Morrie could spend every waking moment in self-pity, feeling his body for decay (腐烂), counting his breaths. So many people with far smaller problems are so self-absorbed, their eyes glaze over if you speak for more than thirty seconds. They already have something else in mind a friend to call, a fax to send, a lover they’re daydreaming about. They only snap back to full attention when you finish talking, at which point they say “Uh-huh”or “Yeah, really” and fake their way back to the moment.

“Part of the problem, Mitch, is that everyone is in such a hurry,” Morrie said. “People haven’t found meaning in their lives, so they’re running all the time looking for it. They think of the next car, the next house, the next job. Then they find those things are empty, too, and they keep running.”