Life is short.

Lately I have been thinking about how short life truly is. I know it is kinda early for me to write such a "serious" blog, but I have a huge burden laying on my heart so I am sharing from my heart.  It is a challenge mainly for myself. I know that as we get older, we lose family, friends and acquaintances. Unfortunately, that is life. And let's be honest here, sometimes life is just not fair and doesn't seem to make sense to us. Of course, God has it under control, He knows what He is doing and therefore it doesn't really matter if we understand.  That brings me to my point (yes, I do have one). I was 18 when I lost my MawMaw. I was 2 weeks into my freshman semeter of college. She was 72 when she passed suddenly. Even though it has been almost 12 years I still miss her. I won't say that I totally understand why she was taken, but I know that she lived a good life and is in a better place. I have lost other family members since her death. My PawPaw in 2005. My great uncle in 2008. However, lately, it seems that the losses just keep coming. I hate to say it, but unfortunately it seems like the only news I hear is bad.  We hear of an older person passing away and we think "They had a good life."  Now, however, everytime I turn around it seems I am hearing about young people dying, people with families and young children. Case in point, about 3 weeks ago a woman I was close to when we worked together full time died. Unfortunately, we did a terrible job keeping in touch after we quit our full time job. She was 46. She was given 4 weeks after her diagnosis of cancer. She didn't even make it 4 weeks. She left behind a husband of 18 years and 5 kids between the ages of 18 and 7. The only thing I can think is it's just not fair. Those kids not having a mother...it is just not fair.  This past week a guy that attended our church (he was in my in laws Sunday School class) died suddenly after being involved in a motorcycle wreck. He was 41. He left behind his wife and kids, his youngest child is only 4.  These stories hurt my heart. I just can't imagine going through life without a mom or a dad. I know people do it, but it just breaks my heart. I found a blog this weekend about a 5 month old baby girl named Avery who had an SMA and was given only a few months to live. Today, I found out that she suddenly passed. A few months ago, in February, a little boy with EB a genetic disease died. He was 2 years and 8 months.  My heart is broken for these families. To loose a child has to be absolutely terrible. I can't even imagine what these families are going through. I say all this and give all these examples for one reason: LIFE. IS. SHORT. We are not promised today. We are not promised tomorrow. That's why everyday when we wake up we should THANK GOD that he has allowed us to live ONE MORE DAY.  We should not take ANYTHING for granted, because you NEVER know when you will breathe your last breath. We should never complain about a bad day (I am terrible about that), but we should be thankful that we were given another day.  We should do something everyday to make a difference in someone's life. Our children, our spouse, our inlaws (those can be the hard ones) or a perfect stranger.  We should live each day like it IS our last!! Make sure that you tell someone you love them. Make sure you kiss your spouse or your kids 10,000 times a day! Make sure you smile (oohh, I really hit home there...I am a frowner).   So, in fear of repeating myself (bad habit), I will sign off with this thought. We only have ONE LIFE! Let's live it!  Let's show others God and HIS love through our life! 


Nikki

P.S. Make sure you give those family members hugs and kisses, tell them that you love them and hold them close.
P.P.S. I am not going to lie, as I proofread this post I am thinking "what the heck makes me think I can write about this subject". But, it has been laying on heart and I think it is something I definitely need to work on. So, whoever wants to work on it with me....let's do this!  Also, feel free to write me some feedback.