Live Like You Were Dying

Okay, so I didn't have a great title for this blog, so I stole the title of a Tim McGraw song. Have you ever read an obituary and thought to think what yours might say? Now, I know some people don't like to think about things they consider morbid, but a healthy dose of morbidity might just help us really live! (Think of someone who gets a terminal diagnosis of cancer or someone who's just lost a loved one. Death truly puts things in perspective.)

I'm one of those quirky people who actually read the obituary section. It's always bittersweet to read a long, loving obit. Someone so amazing in life that the pain of their death is greater than normal. And then the sad obituaries where there really isn't much to be said. A life wasted, perhaps.

I read a great article one time that included a line that said something to this effect, "I don't want my obituary to read, 'she kept a clean stove.'" It made me laugh, but how true! It really hit home with a Type A/OCD personality like me!

When I kick the bucket, I want to have one humdinger of an obituary. You know something to the effect of, "Granny loved skydiving, made a mean chocolate cake and loved her family more than life itself."

I think we should all take the time to think what would be said of us at our funeral or in our obituary. Will our kids remember us running through the backyard sprinkler with them or were we too busy manicuring our lawns? Will our husband have memories of a wife who made him the best birthday dinners or a lady that was always at a PTA meeting? Will our children remember our smiling faces at their school play or that mom was at the office working late to pay for that shiny, new car?

As long as God gives me breath, I hope I can keep my priorities straight. It's a daily battle for most of us and definitely for me. I want to try to be part of everything I can for those I love. Babies being born, someone taking their last breathe, school plays, soccer games, you name it. May the "busyness" of life never get in the way of the truly important things. If my heart's going to give out may it be from laughing myself to death not stressing myself there.

If we truly live life and ingrain ourselves in the lives of others, we will leave a mark on this world that even death itself cannot erase. I hope I "live like I was dying."