The things in life that we take for granted ……. (An important life lesson that has changed my outlook on life)

Several months ago, I had the opportunity of attending a memorial service for a friend who had just recently lost her mom.

It was an incredibly somber experience, given that her mom had suffered several health complications prior to her passing.

However, amidst the emotion provoking ceremony, one thing particularly stood out for me which has given me a new meaning to life. And that was the sermon of the Clergy who had preached during the emotional ceremony.

The Pastor’s message has left an indelible mark on my life and it has further given meaning to how I relate with my fellow man, on a daily basis. The Pastor’s message was titled, “Create a Moment.”

You see, in life, we often tend to take so many things for granted. For some of us, the fact that we have never experienced pain or hardship, makes us undermine the experiences of those who have to go through such things on a daily basis.

For some others, the fact that we get to see someone every day, live in the same accommodation space with them, grew up together in the same family, live in the same neighborhood, attend the same church or other social gatherings or even work at the same organization or occupy the same office makes us treat those people in our lives, like “one of those things.”

We treat these ‘seemingly’ familiar (or maybe unfamiliar) people like they will always be there, and never take the time to build or nurture lasting relationships.

For many of us, our excuse is time. We never always have the time for some other people, other than ourselves. We are too busy to call others, visit them or just even share a smile with our fellow man. All because we are trying to get life to happen.

My friend’s mother was a very hard-working woman who did everything within her power to give her children the best education and ensured that they succeeded with their dreams in life.

In fact, my friend often described her mother as a “strong woman.” However, like we may all know, sometimes life happens and takes things out of our control.

Therefore, this seemingly “strong woman” got visited by one of those issues of life and during the last years of her life, she suffered a great deal of pain due to a failing health.

But, in the midst of her suffering, while some people supposedly close to her opted to prioritize other affairs of life over their relationship with her, my friend opted to ‘create a moment’ with her mother.

In fact, my friend created multiple moments with her mother, capturing Every. Single. Moment. Of her last years on earth, and not missing out on even a single event with her ailing mother.

She made sure she was there at her mother’s side during every doctor’s appointment or hospital admission. She made sure she supervised the people tasked with the responsibility of attending to the activities of daily living of her mom, Every. Single. Day.

My friend was always by her mother’s side, ensuring that she got the best care and lived every moment of her last years on earth in the best way possible because she knew that her mom was never going to be here forever.

She captured every single moment she spent and now she has a whole lot of awesome memories to hold on to, while some other people only wished they had done things a little bit differently.

But, alas! It is too late because Mama is gone and gone forever! And there can never be any other moment with her. That time is lost and can never be regained.

Which brings me to the main point of this post.

[Mind you, I hold nothing against those who decided to pursue other priorities while they relegated to the rear their relationship with their mother. I hold nothing against them because this is life with so many pressing commitments and incredible deadlines to meet.]

However, in the midst of all our other commitments, we must learn to create a balance. This is especially important because time lost can never be regained.

We must learn to create lasting moments with the ones we love, as well as with people who we encounter during our daily walk here on earth.

We do not stand to lose out on anything if we just choose to be kind and warm to the people we encounter daily.

And more importantly, we must reach out to others, those that mean the most to us and let them know that we love them and care about them.

In this age of social media and the internet, communication has become a whole lot easier! Instead of only scrolling through Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter updates, why don’t you reach out to that family member, an old classmate, friend co-worker or colleague of yours and say “hello” to check out on how they are doing?

And with the rise of depression and suicide, you never know how far a friendly greeting can go or what a difference it can make. Because we can only guess what the other person might be passing through! They would never tell us if we do not ask!

You are not the only one that is busy. We are all trying to get things done. But, in the midst of all that, we must create a moment:

·        To love

·        To play

·        To be kind, nice and warm with others

·        To form memories or bonds with those closest to our hearts

·        To …….. (fill in the gap)

So, yes, that Pastor has reinforced my perspective about life and people. And that is to treat everyone like they matter and to make every moment count!

Because, if you do not seize on the gift of the moment that you have right now, you may never have it again. And hopefully, it doesn’t become too late at that time!

So, you go 'create a moment' and feel free to thank me later!!!

Thank you so much for reading!

Evi is a Resident Physician and loves to write to stimulate the best in others.