I was watching Oprah yesterday (since at 4:00 PM I am not so busy in my store) and she had Mitch Albom on who wrote a new book For One More Day. It poses the question: If you had one more day to spend with someone who has passed, who would it be and what would you do/say? It is important, I think, to reflect, especially this time of year on how important and meaningful the simple things are despite the materialism going on around us. Although you may think, "here goes miss negative again, thinking about death" - this is part of my pursuit to be more positive and appreciative. As I thought about this question it became even more clear to me because of who I would spend my day with and what I would do. So, think about this today and remember how fortunate we all are to be happy, healthy, and to love each other as much as we do! I love you all!
1. If you had one more day to spend with someone who has passed, who would you spend it with and what would you do?
2. If you had one hour left to live who would you call?
My responses:
1. I am fortunate to have only lost a few really close people. Because of this I cannot pick just one. So I will talk about all three. For all of them this is true: I would want to spend a day with Grandpa Jack, Grandma Jack and Grandpa Padupski. I would want to do what they enjoy doing for the day and I would just LISTEN! There is so much unknown and I would love to know more.
I would love to start my day with grandpa Jack baking (I don't know if he liked to do this so this may be the one part that does not qualify for what they want to do but..) I would love to bake with him and listen to what he has to say. Then I would want to draw and paint with him and just listen. I would then love to go to the racetrack w/him and hear how he gambles and what he has to say about the horses. Finally I would want to finish my day w/him talking about grandma and his family. I would tell him how much I love him, how much he has influenced my life even in his passing and I would thank him for the father he gave me.
I would like to spend my day with grandma Eloise sculpting and glassworking. I would love to just listen to her soft voice talk about school and what that meant to her, to listen to her talk about grandpa and her family. I would tell her how much I love her, how proud I am of her for her accomplishments and how I am amazed more and more every time I think about it by what a pioneer she was for women in education and art. I would thank her for the father she gave me.
I would like to spend my day with grandpa padupski working on crossword puzzles. I would like to listen to him talk about when he was a child, his parents, grandma and his family. Of all grandparents, I know the least about him and I presume it is because I didn't spend enough time listening. I would tell him how much I love him and I would thank him for the mother he gave me.
2. If I had 1 hour left to live I would call Joe, Mom & Dad, Blaine & Erin.
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2 comments:
It is Sunday morning and I am totally crying, although my tears are happy ones. Your words reflect some of what I have so often thought myself. We are very fortunate to have the memories we do, but it does seem that there is a lot we don't know. It would be nice to hear their voices again, wouldn't it? Thanks for the good cry. Your reflections will certainly make me more mindful as I go about my day. I needed to get out of my "get it off my to-do list and go go go" mode anyway and reading your words did just the trick. After all, each person we encounter has a stoy of their own. I think that "listening" part is pretty important every day. Love you, Erin
Your thoughts are heartwarming! You've give yourself a lofty goal - but an admirable one. Learning to "listen" without critizing, judging, or offering unasked-for advice (one of MY greatest challenges) can, ultimately, be one of your best sources of wisdom. Your comments about family make me even more determined to spend as much time as possible with Grandma. I don't want to be sorry some day that I didn't call or write or visit just because the drive sometimes seems so long. That's probably just an excuse. The time I spend with her becomes more valuable as the days move on - just as the time I get to spend with my children is so important to me. Of course, the time I have with your Dad is one of my greatest treasures and one I thank God for every day. You all are so special! Gosh-Erin told me to get the tissues and was she ever right. A nice little cry can do wonders for the soul. I even feel better about having to finish cleaning the bathroom! Wanna come over and help me, Kris? Ha-Ha-Ha. Enjoy your day off. Love, Mom
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