Part of what has led us to playing catch-up this time happens to be family illness. This piece is dedicated to reminding one that life roars by quicker than we might expect it to:

The End?

Picture

Looking around the sandbox,

playing with toys that seem to get in the way of playing with the sand,

when two warm and welcoming phalanges approach,

pull you up out of the sandy warmth, and

take you onto the next adventure in life.

 

Now picture

walking across a stage,

dressed head-to-toe in clothing you aren’t a fan of

for people who are making it quite obvious that they are fans of yours.

Receiving a diploma that

while everyone in high school these days expect to get,

is still a celebrated accomplishment,

in the slightly shiny pairs of eyes beaming up at you from the crowd.

 

Picture one more time,

sitting next to the owner of those beaming, shiny eyes and

warm and welcoming phalanges,

wondering if you’ve made the right decisions as they struggle from

a plethora of maladies that are making them uncomfortable, to say the least.

 

Stop.

Now think back between walking across the stage and

sitting in that chair next to them.

Did you do enough, in case this is The End?

Did you fully realize what they did for you,

as you continue to write your own story,

to your own end?

 

Pause.

If the answer you come up with

is not one that you enjoy or want to accept,

do everything in your power to change that,

so you can make sure you reach the narrative

that you want in The End.