Life vs. Death

Are we truly living?

By Dawn E Wade

I have been thinking about life and death quite a bit lately.  My beloved friend, Lorenzo Rhodes recently lost four loved ones in the span of two months.  One of those loved ones being his father.  After I received the news, my heart went out to him and his family but my mind began to race.  I would think things like, "What was his father's last thoughts," and "Did he have any regrets?"  Was he able to accomplish his dreams and live the life he always wanted or was he just existing from day to day?  I remember about five years ago, my cousin, Francis Hatton went to work for the Employment Commission in Martinsville, VA.  As she sat at her desk working, she passed out and died from what we believe to have been an aneurism.  She was in her late twenties.  If we knew that our last day was today, what would we spend it doing?  I'm almost sure, if Francis had known what was about to happen, she  wouldn't have went to work, she would have spent her last moments with her son.  Unfortunately, none of us has any clue when our last day will be, so how do we account for each and every day and live it to the fullest?

When I was younger, I couldn't wait to be older, now that I'm older, I wish I had experienced more things when I was younger.  This is a habit I am in the process of breaking.  This article about living life to the fullest has plenty of ways to enjoy life right now.  In our society, we are obsessed with the rat race.  We are working sometimes 16 to 18 hours a day so that we can live the American Dream.  Yet, none of us have stopped to think that maybe my American Dream doesn't involve being the CEO of a Fortune 500 Company even if thats what I'm pursuing.  When you think about it, it's quite ironic.  Most of us spend our entire lives working so we can live more comfortably but in our to maintain the level of comfort we desire, it requires more working.  This means we never really get to truly enjoy the comforts we have created.  Is this what life is all about.  I have often witnessed families that our on or right above the poverty line, laughing and enjoying even the smallest of pleasures.  I have also witnessed families who have every material possession they desire but happiness has eluded them.  How many people do you know are continuing to live miserable lives because they are stuck in an unhappy marriage or job.  In the end, is it costing them more to stay?

Every year, I watch the 9/11 attacks documentaries that are air on the history channel.  There is one story in particular that grabs my attention no matter how many times I see it.  I can't remember the name of the victim but his story is compelling to me.  On the morning of 9/11, he was scheduled to be on American Airlines flight 11.  He had overslept that morning and was racing to make his flight.  He moved quickly through security and raced through the airport hoping he could make his flight.  I can't remember where he was headed but it was important for him to make his flight.  Unfortunately, he never made to his destination and because of the radical actions of a terrorist, he lost his life in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.  It was on that day, I decided to be anxious for nothing.  It was this story that taught me that sometimes the thing we run after is the very thing that will kill us.  

We do not have a say on when we are born or when we die but we can appreciate and enjoy every moment we are allowed to live and breathe on this earth.  How will you make every day count?  I've decided to laugh every day, I've decided to try and love all that cross my path, and I've decided to give thanks to God in the good and bad that comes into my life.  The truth is, the only time you truly know that you have is the moment you are in right now.  So try to stop rehashing the past, (it can't be changed) and try to stop focusing on the future so much, (it is not promised) and begin living your best life today.  You have every right to enjoy being who you are, so try to get the know the real you, and then you will know life has truly began.