Life is Temporary and Fragile - Live it Now

I've always known, even as a child, that life is fragile. Back in the 40s, death was not hidden from children, nor were we counseled. But we had love all around us. It was all right to cry, to question, and in the end, move on.

However, hitting 70 in about a month, and living in a senior mobile home community, it is even more obvious. Rarely does a week go by without news of an illness, a passing, or someone moving to be nearer their families as time grows shorter. It brings home a fact that I must always be aware of: Life must be lived. It must be lived now, not tomorrow, not next week, not next year.

Words of gratitude and kindness and love must be given, now, not tomorrow, not next week, not next year. Now is all I have and all I can give to others.

So today, once again, after hearing of yet another passing among my neighbors and yet another pneumonia victim in a hospital, I remind myself to thank those I promised I would thank, to hug those who need a hug, and to live - now.