This I Believe

I believe that life is precious, but short so we must view each day as a gift and appreciate the ones we love.

Have you ever stopped to think about all the wonderful people in your life, all the people who mean the most to you, who have been there for you through the good and the bad? If you're like me, you probably don't think about them nearly enough.

Sometimes it takes us going through a difficult situation to realize how much our family means to us and how much we take them for granted. They are the ones that support us and love us when everyone else turn their backs on us, pack their bags, and leave us in the dust as soon as things get tough. Family members have unconditional love, love that is not dependant upon how much money we make or what car we drive or how popular, unpopular, attractive or unattractive we are. Yet they're the people we most often neglect in life. The fundamental excuse we always give as to why we ignore the ones we love is that we're "too busy" to think about or dedicate time to them. What we don't realize is that it's better in the long run to make time today than to live with regrets tomorrow when that person is no longer around to tell them how much they mean to us.

I had always heard about other people who knew people with cancer, but it was a far away and impersonal thing. Never had I imagined that it would intrude into my own family, like a thief taking away one of the most significant people in my life. As I watched my uncle wither away before my very eyes, I rushed to quickly make up for lost time. I felt regret in my heart for every time I had skipped out on my family to go out somewhere else, or how I mistreated him when I was younger while he sacrificed to take care f me while my mother was at work.

How I wish today I would've spent more time with him when I had the chance. Because although flowers on a grave are pretty, they hold no true significance to their recipient; the person can no longer enjoy the flowers or the thought that you cared. Flowers should be given and tears should be shed today while they're still around to witness and appreciate it. We should spend more time focusing on the positive qualities that they exhibit and less time trying to change them into what we wish they could be.

After his death, I promised myself I would have a different perspective on life. It took me going through a difficult situation to realize it, but today I see the value of life and the beauty in the ones that surround me. I believe that life is precious, but short so we must view each day as a gift and appreciate the ones we love.