Wednesday, May 25, 2005

I never met the man. I'm not sure any of us have but it seems as if he could be our next door neighbor. Although 82 years old when he wrote the narration If I Had My Life To Live Over, it seems like he speaks with our own heart and thoughts. So for those of you have not recently read this wonderful narration, here it is to help jumpstart your day...

If I had my life to live over, I would let myself make more mistakes next time.

I would relax, I would limber up, I would be crazier than I've been on this trip.

I would take more chances, I would take more trips; I would scale more mountains, I would swim more rivers, I would watch more sunsets, and I would eat more ice cream.

I would have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary ones.

You see, I was one of those people who lived prophylactically and sensibly and sanely, hour after hour and day after day.

Oh, I've had my moments, and if I had it to do over, I'd have more of them. In fact, I'd try to not have anything else;

- just moments -

- one after another -

instead of living so many years ahead of my day.

I've been one of those people who never went anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, and a parachute.

If I had it to do all over again, I'd travel lighter, much lighter than I have on this trip.

I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would ride the merry-go-rounds and catch more gold rings.

I would greet more people and smell more flowers, and dance more often.

If I had it to do over again, but you see, I don't...

My friend, "if" is a very powerful word - it can paralyze us into waiting for Life to unfold before us and it can cause us to spend our waking moments constantly in retrospection. Don't "if" your life away. Start today and make a list of all the things you want and need to do... and move past your "if"s.

There is a wonderful anonymous quote that states, "Each person is born to one possession which outvalues all the others - their last breath." So dance in the glow of your life, my friend - there in the shadow of this one possession.