My late wife would have been 59 years old today.
I share this with you to remind you, and me, of a couple of important points:
- Life Is Short
- You cannot imagine the impact you have on other people
We have talked about life being short before, so I won’t belabor it. I don’t want to be perceived as Mr Gloom and Doom, because I am not really like that. I just want you to learn from my life, just as I want to learn from yours.
But I would like to say a few words about the impact we have on other people.
This past weekend my son, daughter-in-law, and 3 grandkids visited. I can look at them and see the impact Vickie had on their lives. Four of them of would not even exist if not for her. But, beyond that, they have been impacted in countless, wonderful ways by the influence she had on their thinking and their way of being. I look at them and I think of what a tragedy it is that they no longer get to learn from her, to hear her laughter, to bask in her love of them and her love of life and all of creation.
Yet, Vickie would never have realized how much impact she had on them, or even how much impact she had on me. She would not have realized how much she influenced people we met in church or our friends. She was modest and just did not think about that kind of thing. Yet, I have been impacted by her more than words can describe … my life changed as a result of her influence. First from her living and then from her dying.
So I leave you with these questions to ponder:
- For those special people who have a great impact on your life, are you showing your gratitude as you should?
- Have you taken time to think about the impact you are having on others, and whether it is the impact you want to have?
Take care.