One Life to Love: Living My Dash

I heard about the "Dash" poem on 99.1 today. It's about when you die, and your tombstone is imprinted with your birth date and the date of your death, with a dash in the middle. But the most important part isn't your "birth" day or your "death" day, the most important part is the dash in the middle, that's where everything that means anything happens! Here's the poem:

The Dash

I read of a man who stood to speak

at the funeral of a friend.

He referred to the dates on her tombstone

from the beginning...to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth

and spoke of the following date with tears,

but he said what mattered most of all

was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time

that she spent alive on earth...

and now only those who loved her

know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;

the cars....the house...the cash.

What matters is how we live and love

and how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...

are there things you'd like to change?

For you never know how much time is left

that can still be rearranged

If we could just slow down enough

to consider what's true and real,

and always try to understand

the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,

and show appreciation more

and love the people in our lives

like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,

and more often wear a smile...

remembering that this special dash

might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read

with your life's actions to rehash...

would you be proud of the things they

say about how you spend your dash?

This poem reminds me of the quote that says,

"Only one life, 'twill soon be passed. Only what’s done for Christ will last."

That quote is so short, but pretty much wraps up everything it means to live as a believer.

Makes me really think about the choices I make throughout my day, and if they really make a difference...do they really make a difference for Christ or am I just doing whatever I need to do to get through the day....I'm sorry to say, it's usually the latter.

We're only here for such a short time....who knows if I will be here tomorrow. I need to make today count. I think of my stepfather that died suddenly at 38. THIRTY EIGHT!! That's me in 13 years!

I'm sure he never thought he would die that young...and we have no idea how long we will be on this earth.

James 4:14 (New King James Version)
"whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away."

So, all this to say, live your dash! Make it count!!

In other news, Isaac was screaming at me tonight because he wanted to pull out the bottom rack of the dishwasher and though he tried with all his 5-month-old might, suprisingly enough, he just couldn't do it!