It was 20 years ago this week that one of my best friends decided to take a little vacation he and his family planned over the 4th of July Holiday. I was invited to tag along but I decided to work, even though I could have taken the time off. There will be other times to get together, I reasoned in my mind. The “other times” never came. He drowned in the lake they were camping by. I never thought my brief conversation with him the day before would be my last. His tragic death shook me up for years to come. I decided to make a change in my life priorities.
What are your priorities? Perhaps you have even forgotten about them- not intentionally of course. Life gets busy. Bills need to get paid. We are hit with an onslaught of distractions on a daily basis. But at the end of your life, with what do you hope to feel complete?
One of the things I don’t want is to be lost in a sea of regrets: “I wish I could have” or “I should have done this” or “What was I thinking?” It is so easy to lose sight of our true priorities. We can disconnect from those things we once considered our greatest blessings. I constantly have to re-evaluate my life in order to stay on course.
What are your priorities? Perhaps you have even forgotten about them- not intentionally of course. Life gets busy. Bills need to get paid. We are hit with an onslaught of distractions on a daily basis. But at the end of your life, with what do you hope to feel complete?
One of the things I don’t want is to be lost in a sea of regrets: “I wish I could have” or “I should have done this” or “What was I thinking?” It is so easy to lose sight of our true priorities. We can disconnect from those things we once considered our greatest blessings. I constantly have to re-evaluate my life in order to stay on course.
Life does happen. But make sure an autopilot life doesn’t cloud your perspective on what really matters to you. Take some time to get clarity on what it is you really want. Chisel through all the “surface” answers and get to the deep inner chambers of your heart.
What REALLY is important to you?
This may very well be one of the most important questions you can ever ask.
2 comments:
Great post. But, I think we not only have to ask ourselves the question, but we have to ask those around us if we are truly following through with our plan. It's easy for me to think about what's important and plan to be purposeful, but it's extremely hard to carry out the plan.
I recently took my son to a waterpark and he would not leave my side (which is unusual for a 13 yr old boy who had taken a friend along). When I said he needed to make sure he included his friend and I would be okay by myself, he said that he wanted to spend time with me--and that I'm always on the computer or too tired to play or my back was hurting--so he wanted to spend time with me now when I wasn't doing those things.
It stung big time, but he was right. Just because I'm in the same house or same room doesn't mean I'm engaging and actually following through with my plan to spend time with him. So my advice is to ask those you love if you really are meeting their needs or if you only think you are. You could be missing the mark completely and what a regret that would be.
well done.
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