If You Knew They Would Die Tomorrow

There is no doubting that we all hold dear the ones we truly love. Our family members, our partners, our closest friends. But even though we honour those relationships and love each person for whichever reason, is it truly enough? Do we not take advantage of the closeness we have with these people, and do we not rely on that closeness to 'feed the relationship'. What I'm saying is, claiming that you are close to someone does not necessarily mean you are one hundred and ten percent into that relationship. Sure, you say you are close, but how close are you? Do you see them a few times a week, or maybe a few times a month? But you're still close, right? You phone your mother or father every so often to say "hello", which means you are tight, right?

Not necessarily.

Take a family member, possibly a sibling, who you love and cherish. You've got a busy week ahead and all they want to do is meet you for ten minutes of your time and sit down and enjoy a coffee. It seems to have been weeks since you saw them last and the more they ask you, the more agitated you become. It's simple really, just a coffee, but you keep putting it off and putting it off. But that's okay, because you're still close to your sibling so whether or not you meet them for coffee is no big deal.

We'll use this as an example of testing that closeness. What if you could see a day ahead? What if, by magic, you were able to see the exact events of the following day for yourself, and for every single person that you love. What if, in this instance, tomorrow - your sibling was to die, suddenly, tragically, and there was nothing you could do.

Would you postpone that meeting? Would you not make the time to see them? I'm sure you would do anything to spend that moment with them, because you knew that tomorrow was the last day of their life. You would arrange to see them, and when they'd arrive with a smile and begin to start chatting about their day, they wouldn't last five seconds because you would have your arms around them tight, telling them how much you love them. Sure they would be shocked, but they would be so happy with how much love you have shown them. And the conversation? It would be full of memories, positivity, laughter and joy - you wouldn't want to spend a moment talking about how bad your day was or how annoying things can be, because it would just waste what valuable time you have between you at this moment.

Let's say you did meet them without this magical change of seeing the day ahead - how would you approach this? Maybe not see them for another week, and when you do, quickly down your coffee, have a small chat about life (mainly complaining about how life is) and then have to leave quickly and run off to do whatever else you had to do that day. What if you forgot to tell them you loved them? What if you left, and they were hurt at how you seemed so disinterested in them telling you about their day. What if, you left, and the next day they died - suddenly, tragically, and there was nothing you could do.

Would you not be full of regret, alongside the feelings of loss, heartbreak and helplessness? Would you not cry, "I wish I told them I loved them! I just wish I held them close and let them know!". Would you not think of all the times you could have (and you could have) spent together, even if just for a moment. Would you not remember all the times you ignored their calls because you were busy, would you not remember the times you thought how special they were to you but didn't have the time to let them know?

Do not rush 'love', do not take it for granted. Do not assume that loving someone is enough, but become love to that person by being with them, talking to them, allowing them to know how important they are to you. It takes two seconds to answer a phone and five minutes of your day to chat, laugh, and let them know what they mean to you. The truth is, we cannot see ahead and we do not know what tomorrow brings, but that is the thing, tomorrow can bring your world up, or bring it crashing down. What you do between then and now is what is important, so let them know.

Sure, claiming that you love someone and knowing that they are important to you, is simply not enough. If you know how much they mean to you, and they're having a sad day and don't know, and the next day something happens - wouldn't you want to go back and tell them you love them? Of course you would. Which is why it's important to do it today... now. If you are angry with someone, don't let it get in the way of that love, let them know - it's better to live with peace than hatred, and no one wants to cry, "They're gone now and I told them I hated them!".

So, each day think happy things, live happily, and those that are close to you? Any time they talk to you or see you, talk about the better things in life, tell them how much you love and care for them, and let this be the closeness you have, not the fact that you are related/together/friends be the only reason you're close. Live that connection.

Remember... life is fragile, but love most certainly isn't.

Cherie

xxxx

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