Why Does it Take Tragedy to Remind Us to Live?
This morning I opened an email from CashCowCouple. The email simply contained a link to this YouTube video…curious, I launched it. I sat there fixated for the following 22:21 minutes. Make the time to watch this if you haven’t already seen it…
I myself have yet to endure the pain of personal tragedy. I feel fortunate about that but I know the day is coming and, yes, it scares me. I have, however, watched people I love dearly experience terrible tragedy and their pain and grief touches me deeply.
The Fleeting Resolve to Live Differently
I don’t understand why we “get it” when we first learn of people like Zach and his family or have a personal experience with tragedy and then so quickly forget the lessons and our resolve to live differently. That’s not true for everyone…maybe it’s just those of us who have yet to be hit with that terrible hammer.
Zach’s Story Reminded Me of This
- “You don’t have to find out you’re dying to start living” Zach
- “It makes you happy to see someone smile because you put it there — that’s what’s awesome about living in this world” Zach
- “It’s really simple: try and make people happy” Zach
- “I think that’s actually one of the blessings of cancer…you come out of denial and life is richer” Zach’s mother
What Gets in My Way
As the days pass putting time between tragedy and daily life, I lose sight of my resolve because:
- I start to focus on the long view. Meaning my long-term goals (like saving for retirement) begin to overshadow the short-term experiences that cost money but bring joy, memories and connection.
- My personal goals loom and I feel the need to make progress, which keeps my focus narrow and tempers my desire to venture out and “do” other things.
What I’m Going to do About it
In honor of Zach and others whose names I won’t mention, I resolve to:
- Have more parties
- Worry less
- Plan a little trip
- Plan a big trip
- Spend more time with family
- Make people smile
- Be grateful every day for my life, health and the people in my life that I love
Summary
How has tragedy impacted your life, what have you changed as a result of it? Did you find you went back to “life as usual” after a period of time? Why do you suppose we do that? I would be honored if you’d share your thoughts here in the Comments section…
I invite you to click the Join My Mailing List button below to receive future posts via email. I promise to keep your email private; it’s a matter of respect.
The post Why Does it Take Tragedy to Remind Us to Live? appeared first on Escaping Dodge.