From JuJu with Love

There’s a phrase I say a lot:

YOLO.

You only live once.

For me, it means something pretty simple:

Take the trip. Eat the doughnut. Tell people how you feel before it’s too late.

Life has taught me that time moves faster than we think. The people we love get older. Opportunities pass by. The “someday” trips we talk about don’t always happen unless we decide to make them happen.

But for me, YOLO isn’t just a catchy phrase.

It’s something much more personal.

My mom spent the last 30 years of her life in a wheelchair. There were so many places she couldn’t go. So many things she didn’t get to see or do.

And I think about that more often than I probably say out loud.

So over the years, I’ve tried to live with one simple goal:

I want to be able to say:

“I can’t believe I did that.”

Not…

“I wish I had.”

Sometimes that has meant standing at the Equator with a University of Michigan flag.
Crossing the Drake Passage to Antarctica.
Climbing volcanoes in the Galapagos.
Riding camels in the Sahara.
Flying in tiny planes over African savannas.
Or climbing into a hot-air balloon before sunrise.

And sometimes, it just means eating the doughnut. (Or the churros in Madrid)

Because not every YOLO moment has to be big or dramatic.

Sometimes it’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

Sometimes it’s a small yes.

A small splurge.

A small moment of joy you decide not to talk yourself out of.

Every time I travel somewhere new, I wear a simple heart necklace — and if you look closely in most of my photos, it’s there. It wasn’t my mom’s, but somehow it still feels like it belongs to her. And wherever I am, I find myself touching it and saying something like,

“Can you believe where we are today, Mom?”

Because in a way, she’s still traveling with me.

That’s what YOLO means to me.

Not living recklessly.

Just living fully… while I still can.

Because “someday” isn’t a plan. And “later” isn’t guaranteed.

Tell me one “YOLO” moment — big or small — that you’ll never forget 💙

From Juju with love 💙✈️