It hit too close to home....

The past few days have been a mixed up jumbled mess of emotions, thoughts, and tears and I had to take some time. Last week, a friend of the family passed away suddenly and my Mom and I attended the visitation and funeral, and it hit too close to home.

Seeing her two children, sisters and brothers too, hearing what they had to say...it left me shaken a bit...our lives were very similar and I could almost hear my own child saying some of things her daughter was saying. There were memories shared of days spent in the park feeding the squirrels, Christmas gifts were handmade because there was just more love to be had in a handmade gift, days spent baking, reading stories...so many memories. 

Hearing all this left me thinking...what would my life be remembered as? What would my child remember of me or the memories we've made together? What would be the special moments for her? It made me stop and think and it made me wonder...what has my life become? What could be said for my life accomplishments and dreams. Did I chase them enough? Did I accomplish the things I wanted to? I had lots of thoughts and it took me some time to work through them all.

I realized too that up until my injury, I was living the life I wanted, the life I had worked so hard to achieve...I was living it! Could I say the same thing now? In some ways yes I am, and in others...no I'm not. It made me think...what could I be doing differently? What was standing in my way, preventing me from going after the life I want for me? Truth was...it was me, and it was my own thoughts sometimes. 

One dream our friend had was to go back out West, to where she was the happiest in her life, caring for the horses...she had a dream and she was going for it! She was months away from achieving this dream when her heart attack came. She had talked about all she wanted to do and she was so excited to be chasing this dream even at her age. 

Sometimes it takes the loss of someone close to us to make us stop and rethink our lives. Are you living your life to the fullest you could? Are you chasing your dreams? What have you accomplished in your life? Do you believe there's still time to do the things you've always wanted to do? What's stopping you from chasing your dreams? Do the people in your life know how important they are to you? These are just a few of the questions I've asked myself over the past few days.

So with all my thinking and feeling done, I've come to a few conclusions.....

We have but this one life to live...it's a cliche I know but it's painfully true. We only get this one life and it's up to us to live it to the best of our abilities...to have dreams and to chase them...to spend days lazily with our kids sharing the little things in life like a story, or laying on the grass watching the clouds go by. Life is more than the money we make, the jobs we hold or the status we strive to achieve. It's in the love we leave behind. It's in the memories we make. It's the chances we take and the dreams we chase. Life is what we make of it. It's up to us...to tell those we love that we love them, to make our memories...our lives are what WE make of it.

Give it some thought....what do you want to be remembered for and what are you doing to leave that memory behind? 

Here's a few more cliches for you too....

We get but one life...live yours to the fullest. Even a hurting life is still a life worth living. Take your chances and your risks too. Don't let your pain hold you back...live beyond it. 

take good care of you please
​Tammy