Be Thankful

It is an understatement to say that I have been blessed. This is not to say I have not been tested, battered, or hurt — I have. But in a net/net world I feel I am WAY ahead in the plus column.

This past weekend at church the pastor said something that just stuck with me “in the 70 years you have on Earth, how do you want that story to read when you are all done?”

70 years? Really?

What if that was actually true?

For a minute imagine you find out you have 29 years left. You will live to see your daughter turn 32, your son turn 28, you will celebrate a 38th wedding anniversary but not make it to your 40th. How would that change your use of time?

My guess is that it would change it a lot.

In the past four years my daughter has taught me that for as young as I thought I was and as much as I played — she can outplay me and I never feel more alive than when that happens, which is often.

I have learned that people come in and out of your life with great frequency but, there are about 6 or so that you really should spend time with because they build you up and make you better by questioning you on your bullshit — I make them a priority.

After 7 years of marriage I know what it is like to be in a partnership, I understand, more now, the level of sacrifice that it takes to be in a marriage rather than have it as a title. My wife is an incredible person and likely the only one on the planet that can manage the chaos that is my life and love me for it all the same.

I know that sleep is [absolutely] optional. With a second child on the way and a toddler who thinks sleep is what you do between running back and forth from bedroom to bedroom — you figure out how much sleep you actually need vs. the amount you read about in a business book and succeed despite it.

I am grateful for the past two years more so than any before because I have a level of self-awareness that allows me to be fearless in every aspect of my life, which is an amazing way to live your life.

My parents have taught me that you can get busier the less “work” you have to do and I look forward to that phase of my life — I am just not ready to be there yet.

I have a deep understanding that Thanksgiving is a day and being thankful is a discipline we should exercise often and with more people.

What would I do if only had 29 more years left?

Exactly what I am doing right now.