This rule is designed to help evaluate the severity and relevance of a situation. After analyzing the problem and deciding if it is significant enough to be remembered allows the transition into the next phase. If I will remember this situation in five years, and it will significantly impact my life, then I am allowed to drown in self pity. If not, then I must move on and take comfort in the fact that my troubles will soon be forgotten.

This newly discovered rule helped me to accomplish the most physically demanding activity I had ever encountered. Like all other pieces of advice I have received throughout the years, I expected that it would sit untouched in the back of my mind until it was discussed at a camp reunion in the far-off future. To my surprise I applied this rule to my life three weeks after the adventure.

In the first week of the school year I suffered from the overwhelming pressures of the new year. On the verge of tears and a panic attack, I took a second to think to myself, will I even remember this day in five years? After taking a deep breath I faced the honest truth and concluded that this day would be completely insignificant in the grand scheme of my life.

The five-year rule puts my life into perspective. Every day we spend countless hours worrying about the little details that make up our existence, and I want to enjoy every opportunity in my life without dwelling on any problems that will be inconsequential in the future. Although it pains me to think that countless sorrowful moments could have been easily avoided had I known this rule, I look forward to thriving with this wisdom forevermore.