Life Lessons

Every so often, everyday life comes forward in such a way that its lessons become obvious. Like...

1. Life is unpredictable. On a Friday I was having lunch with a dear friend who is eighty-one years young. During our time together she described how her late husband passed away. It was bedtime. He closed the book he was reading and called out to my friend, "Are you coming to bed?" She answered from another room. "Soon. Go ahead and turn out the light." When she came back into the bedroom, he had died from a heart attack. 
APPLICATION: My friend told me, "Ever since then, I make it a point to regularly tell my close friends that I love them."

2. Life is fragile. Two days after this conversation, I met at a brother's house to carpool to a family gathering on Lake Michigan. When I walked into the living room, I was told that my brother-in-law's younger brother had passed away the day before. He had eaten a nice supper and was enjoying an ice cream cone, sitting outside, enjoying the evening.
APPLICATION: Don't take your family members for granted. No matter the differences you may have between/among you there is still something special about familial love.

3. Life can't always be planned. This afternoon I went to an apple orchard that one of my brothers manages. We began final pruning to make sure there's adequate space in-between rows and trees. That way it's a lot easier for the folks u-picking in a few weeks. But after going through two rows of trees, the sky turned really dark grey and it began pouring! We actually heard the sound of the rain hitting the surrounding corn field and ran to my brother's truck to get out of the storm. After sitting it out for about a half-hour I gave up and went back home. 
APPLICATION: Sometimes Mother Nature sets her own agenda, and you're best off going with her flow.

4. Life can be funny. At the afore-mentioned party (celebrating my older sister's birthday) on Lake Michigan, I was tossing a beach toy (sort of like a giant frizbie) with a five-year old grand-nephew. At one point, he looked at me and said, "Let's change our names." I said, "O.K., what'll  your name be?" He smiled mischievously and said, "Mr. Underpants."
APPLICATION: Humor doesn't have to be sophisticated to be appreciated. When my grand-nephew told me what his "new name" was, I burst out laughing. It was spontaneous and his timing was incredible - even though he's all of five years old!

5. Life can be tough. This morning I had breakfast with a good friend whose wife has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. She's been fighting this disease for about a year. Meanwhile he developed a tumor around a nerve feeding into his ear. While he is cancer-free, the operation left a droop on the left side of his face, making it difficult to eat until recently. Now his hearing in the left ear seems damaged. He's very hearing impaired already, so my friend is very concerned about this latest development. (He's scheduled to have an MRI and Ultrasound of the ear tomorrow). Needless to say, the past twelve months have been extremely challenging. "Every day I wake up and feel like 'this can't be happening to us'" he told me. 
APPLICATION: Be honest with yourself and others. Don't feel that you have to explain away difficult days or circumstances. 

6. Life can be absolutely beautiful. Last week, we had a birthday party for one of my younger sisters. She is a very outgoing, energetic person. And she was in seventh heaven surrounded by siblings and friends. Another sister had flown in with her husband from Florida to be there for the celebration of my oldest sister's fiftieth wedding anniversary (the same sister who was staying at the beach house with her own family on Lake Michigan).
APPLICATION: Try to practice being more "in the moment," during simple, everyday events.

7. Life provides moments of absolute peace if we are open to them. Oh, the beach house was incredible! Sitting right above a bluff on the Lake Michigan shoreline. When you walk into the house, there's an open walkway leading to the dining room/living room area that has huge windows along one side. And what you see is the Lake in all its magnificence! I walked into the house, got a few steps in, looked out the window and stopped still. I instantly felt at peace, as if my blood pressure had dropped twenty points!
APPLICATION: It is perfectly o.k. to slow down and even stop to fully experience the joys of life.

Final thought: Establish and nourish your faith. Even if you're an atheist, you believe in something. On good days your faith will deepen your appreciation for life. On not-so-good days, your faith will help you find the silver lining. This includes regularly taking the time to meditate, pray and offer thanks.

Photo Credits: 1. Pixabay, 2. The Lens Flare, 3. deviantart.com, 4. expedia.com