itsawonderfilledlife

There is nothing as life reflective as going to a wedding anniversary party for a couple married more than forty years, or a birthday for someone over seventy, or a funeral of one who has lived long.

To attend such a function is to look at your own life through different eyes. Eyes that look back, eyes that look forward.

I love these events because you get to look at where someone is, and see their life in reverse.

Real life is not lived in reverse.

Real life is lived today, appreciating the journey that brought us thus far, and dreaming of the future to come though the future is always without guarantees. Today needs to be fully enjoyed, fully lived, because it could always be our last.

Whenever I attend those special events, I intentionally remind myself of three things :

1. Live with faith in God. Of the many celebrations I have attended, the ones where God’s presence in the life of the celebrated has been acknowledged, there is no fear of the future, and only thanks for the past. The life of one with a faith in God is one of acknowledging that the best is always yet to come.

2. Family comes first. If I want to be celebrated in such a warm and loving way, treat those who would host such an event well today. That means, family comes before career, before obligations, before friends. My theory is, treat our kids with respect because they will be the ones choosing my care home someday! Family comes first.

3. Live with legacy in mind. How I live today is the pen to paper writing the story of what I will leave behind. I have been to celebrations of life and marriage that are rich in love, in positive impact on others, in stories. I have also been to such celebrations that are barren … simply a nice meal, and pretty decor, but empty of substance, and full of tensions. How we treat others, how we give, the choices that we make all form the legacy that we leave. Live with legacy in mind.

To live intentionally with the goals to live with faith in God, family first, and to live with legacy in mind, is to live well, in the present, through the lens of the future.