Life is Short

• Jaime
• October 29, 2019
• Death, Family, Health, Life
• 2

I’ve talked before about living life to the fullest, and taking every opportunity that comes along. Life is short, people.

This last couple of weeks, we were reminded of our own mortality when my former brother-in-law (my husband’s sister’s ex-husband) had a heart attack. He was working, and fell and hit his head when he lost consciousness. My nephew had a really rough week, not knowing what would happen to his dad, and then knowing that his dad would never be back. Doug was found to be brain dead, and he never woke up.

Many years ago, another brother-in-law had a similar thing happen. My sister and her husband were separated, and he died of a heart attack in his sleep at his apartment. My dad and my sister found him when he didn’t go in to work, and three children instantly lost their dad.

Ladies and gentlemen, life is short. Most of us live our daily lives taking care of our families, going to work, making dinner and doing chores. Not knowing that everything can change in an instant.

I’ve written several times about taking chances, and living life to the fullest. I believe that you have to live your best life, for today. You never know what may be around the corner – the good and the bad.

My kids and my husband – our family – is the best thing in my life. And our extended family is so important as well. We are all here for each other, and we all support each other. All of us have dreams and goals, and as a family we do what we can to help reach those dreams.

For those of us left behind, life still goes on. We still have to take care of each other, go to work, make dinner and do the chores. But, we should do all of those things with awareness and love for each other, knowing that we need to cherish the time that we have together.

Whether death comes at the end of a life well lived – we lost an octogenarian family friend last week as well – or suddenly to someone who should have had years left to live, our job is to keep on living, and to remember the fun, remember the good times. Sadness comes with death. We should also rejoice in life.

Doug was an organ donor, and his last gift was to give ongoing life to others who needed donated organs for transplants. I had never seen an “honor walk” before, but more than 300 people walked with Doug’s body as the nurses took him to the operating room for the donations. This is amazing!

So, I want to remind everyone to become an organ donor, if you aren’t already. That gift of life can help someone else live their best life!

I also encourage everyone out there to know their family health history. Both of my brothers-in-law had fathers who died of heart attacks when they were fairly young. Neither of them was in bad health, but there was family history of congenital heart failure. So, make sure you know your family history, and make sure you find out what you can do to get ahead of potential issues!

I have a family history of diabetes on my mom’s side of the family. My mom and both of her brothers have thyroid issues, and my cousins and I know that we need to be aware of this for ourselves.

My husband’s family has several ladies who have had breast cancer, including my mother-in-law. And all of us are more aware of getting checked and making sure we get ahead of the potential issue.

Ladies and gentlemen, as I mentioned a couple of weeks ago in “Adventures,” having a good relationship with your local doctors is key in helping our kids get the help they need when an accident happens. Likewise, when something big comes our way (as it did for my mother-in-law when she found a lump in her breast), having those relationships helps us get the help we need, fast.

My mother-in-law was very fortunate. One of the nurses at our local clinic connected her with a surgeon in Denver right away, and with the oncology team at University Hospital. Within a week, the lump was removed, and she was set up with radiation. She was able to have tests taken that allowed her to have radiation but no chemo, and now she has been cancer free for almost five years!

I have also talked before about my grandfather. He lived life to the fullest, with diabetes, and enjoyed every minute! At the end of his life, he was still completely with us mentally, but his body failed him. Until that point, I had not known that eventually, diabetes gets the best of all of the internal organs. Death is part of life, and I like to remember that my grandfather was still downhill skiing when he was over 80!

So, live your best life. For you. Live for today. Enjoy every minute! You never know what may happen, and you might as well enjoy it all while you can. Life is short!