NOVEMBER 10, 2015

It’s incredible how short life really is. You never realize how short life is until it changes. Dramatically, instantly and without any warning.

You will wake up in the morning and drink some coffee. You will wake the kids up and get them ready for school. Feed them, dress them and go crazy over finding that one matching sock. And my girls can’t just wear plain white socks. They need the pink striped sock with the red rose on the side…

So as the morning continues, life all around you is continuing and you are completely oblivious to what’s really going on outside those walls.

Somewhere someone is taking their last breath. Somewhere someone is holding their baby as life slowly slips away. Somewhere someone is saying goodbye to their loved one. And here we are… looking for a pink striped sock with a red rose on the side. Life is being lived and lost all around us at all times. And we never know which will consume us more on any particular day. Life… or loss.

This week I have been at two different hospitals with two very important people fighting for their lives. A children’s hospital with my son and a local hospital with my dad. And in between both traumas, my childhood friend passed away from breast cancer.

I am, for the first time in  long time, at a loss for words.

Life is something that we all seem to take for granted sometimes. I found myself so annoyed with my little one because of that dumb sock. When instead I should have been breathing in the moment of sitting in the middle of a pile of mismatched socks with my Little. She wanted to look so unique and like a pretty princess. I should appreciate how special she is. I am learning more and more how precious my time is with these kids. It is amazing how from one day to the next they learn and grow. And before you know it they are walking and talking and then running. And then they are living their own lives and you, as a praying mother, are just hoping that you did a good job at creating a cool, nice and respectful adult.

While I was too busy being annoyed, my dad was almost killed in a traffic accident by someone too busy getting through their own life and running a red light. And while someone else was too busy with their life, I was in the hospital praying to God that my son get enough oxygen into his lungs…

Life… this past week has been a tough one. I was present physically in some places… my heart in another place… and my mind in whole other world. But the hard lesson that I seem to learning over and over again is… life is short. Life is precious. And it should not be taken for granted.

Enjoy those seconds… enjoy those minutes… take advantage of the hours you have with your loved ones.

*blessings*