Thursday, September 25, 2014

What if today was your last?

This last week has been busy. I was out of town over the weekend. I went to Oregon to go my uncle’s funeral. My uncle Tony is an amazing man. He had esophageal cancer and died at the young age of 45.

As I sat at his funeral the spirit enlighten my mind about a few things.

  Gratitude for the gospel. I cannot imagine watching a loved one die and not know that I would be with him or her again. By being a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints I know that life goes beyond the grave. That I will be with loved ones again. I am sure of that. I know without a doubt.
  Hard things happen but God loves us. As I watched my amazing aunt and her kids lose their father I cannot imagine the pain of the loss. But then I am once again reminded that God is all knowing. All loving. That He knows exactly what will happen and why it will happen. It doesn’t mean that it will be easy. Every trial we have is difficult and at many times it may feel unbearable. In the Book of Mormon in 1 Nephi 11:16-17, an angel asked Nephi, “knowest thou the condescension of God?” Nephi answers,” I know that He loveth His children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things”. This is a reminder to all of us that when we ourselves or someone else are going through a hardship that we do not know the meaning of it, but we do know that God loves us.
  Life is precious. If I were to die at 45 that means I have already lived half of my life. Thinking about this was shocking. Time is so precious. “Time is never for sale; time is a commodity that cannot, try as you may, be bought at any store for any price. Yet when time is wisely used, its value is immeasurable. On any given day we are all allocated, without cost, the same number of minutes and hours to use. What time we have we must use wisely. (A time to prepare, Elder Ardern. Conf. Oct 2011.)Stop worrying about the small things, do what you love, spend time with your family.

     You affect others. It was amazing to see how my uncle’s life affected so many people. He showed so many what it really means to be a hero. He showed others how to be determined. He showed others love. He lived a beautiful life. We all affect those around us. Maybe people we may never really know. What we do matters.

Dr. Seuss says it perfectly! Life today as if it was your last. Honestly imagine if you lived that way, just for today! 

May we all be a little more thankful for what we have and that we are able to be on the earth.

Much love,

Rachel

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