I received word this morning that a friend of mine found her husband dead on the bathroom floor. She had talked to him a few hours earlier and he was fine.The reality is that life is unpredictable and at any given moment things can happen that radically change the remainder of your life.
I remember a time not long ago, I went next door to see my parents and my father had learned of a friends death. He said to me, "Guess I'm old now, all my friends are dying off." I felt bad for him, but never imagined I would feel that way too one day. There have been tragic deaths in our family and most of the generation before me has passed. The former is shocking and felt to be a life shortened way too soon. The latter is painful too, but seems to be part of the cycle of life.
I remember a time not long ago, I went next door to see my parents and my father had learned of a friends death. He said to me, "Guess I'm old now, all my friends are dying off." I felt bad for him, but never imagined I would feel that way too one day. There have been tragic deaths in our family and most of the generation before me has passed. The former is shocking and felt to be a life shortened way too soon. The latter is painful too, but seems to be part of the cycle of life.
My father used to write notes on the Christmas decoration boxes; who visited or some note worthy comment about that year. I noticed he started listing the friends that passed away during the year on one of the boxes. I guess that was his way of remembering them. Once a year as he would assemble the Christmas decorations he would read through the previous years list and take time to remember them, It seemed very morbid to me at the time. Christmas is such a joyous time, why would you pick that time of year to do this. Now, I think there is wisdom in that, for if you are reading the list, or adding to the list you are also celebrating that God has given you one more Christmas to live, laugh & love.
Everyday, people, places & situations are placed in our paths. What we do with them are opportunities. Opportunities to experience compassion, empathy, generosity, laughter and most importantly love. We might also be given opportunities to experience frustration, anger, hatred, despair and unhappiness. I think the former is a better use of time & energy.
The sad news I received this morning yielded contemplation of; what would I do, what would I need to take care of, how would I manage all the details of something like that? My father was famous for attention to detail. Many years before his death he compiled a folder with all the details and titled it "In Case of Father's Death". Every year he showed us its location and any additional items that had been added. It did make handling the details easier. Charles & my folder is a work in progress, but today's events has us focused on its completion. Everyone should have an emergency exit plan, it seems morbid but well worth the time & effort. It is in fact an act of love for your family, that the "business" side of it drains you minimally so that you can devote the majority of your energy remembering their love and life.
I received a taste of reality today so I believe I will start to look for my opportunities to experience compassion, empathy, generosity, laughter and love, instead of just waiting for them to come my way. What about you?
No comments:
Post a Comment