The Tragedy of Life

 A friend of mine lost her daughter last night to an overdose. The day before that, another friend lost the father of her children. My sister, unfortunately, had to walk through both of those experiences a while back. The mother of a 13-year-old boy in my neighborhood is mourning the loss of her son to suicide yesterday. My heart is heavy today, thinking of death and loss. I remember, however, when my niece died, how my family pulled together. We are closer today then we ever have been. I also remember putting things in order, getting my priorities straight.

Small annoyances didn't mean anything to me. I just wanted to love people. Love them while they were here, while I was here. Put down any grudges. Forgive. I wanted to do things I'd never done before but always wanted to. I wrote a book. Time was all the sudden very important to me. I realized what a short time we all have. I realized I'd better get to living.

We all have our own beliefs about what happens after this life. But while we're here, let's live. Live fully, love fully, tell people what they mean to you, forgive someone, ask for forgiveness. Don't wait. Don't wait for any of it.