Live Big, Live Loud

I was reading a book this weekend and the main character was musing about what makes a death tragic. She concluded that it's not just a life cut short, a life ended before the person has time to live, that is tragic. She decided that any death that happens before a person really embraces life, before they take risks and wear their heart on there sleeve, is tragic. Reading this didn't really make me pause too long because, as I grew up, I embraced the idea of living life to it's fullest and telling people how I feel. What did make me pause was this message seemed to be turning up everywhere.

On Friday (I think), I stumbled across a post titled For Mikey. Blogger Jennie Perillo of In Jennie's Kitchen wrote a beautiful and heart-wrenching post about her last date with her husband before he suddenly and unexpectedly died.  Then on Saturday, I read a post from the Travel Diva about some people who were contemplating pulling out of triathalon competition because a few people died during the swim section of an event. She had a line that really resonated with me. She said *"We know not the day or the time when God will call us home, so it comes down to a simple choice – Get busy living, or get busy dying." After this timely reminder, I luckily had a day to breathe and digest this message before the universe decided to drive it home so more.

On Monday, I heard the tragic news that a scant two weeks after reaching her heart's desire and having the adoption of SweetPea and LittleBuddy approved, the dear Mel of  Full Circle lost her husband this weekend. He was young. He was vibrant. They finally had their family and now he is gone. Then, today, my dear friend Lynn of Wistfulgirl's World lost her father suddenly and unexpectedly. Once again, after being faced with stories of loss and tragedy, I ran across **a post over at SelfishMom.com that reminded people that life is short and asked us to embrace the moment and tell the people we love how we feel.

There has been so much tragedy, so much heartbreak, in such a short time. It's been a powerful reminder that we never know how much time we have left on this earth. We never know how long we are going to have with our children, our spouses, and our parents. We never know how long we're going to have to bake someone a peanut butter pie or try a new activity or to pursue a dream. Don't wait until a loved one's funeral to share memories and to speak about how you feel. Tell your friends and family you love them. Appreciate even the mundane moments with them. Pursue your dreams. Don't put them off until tomorrow. I beg of you...Live Big and Live Loud. You'll never regret it.


If you could pick one thing, one way to live big and live loud in this next week or month, what would it be?


Vee of Three Little Birds lost her mom this morning. Please add her to your prayers.

*a loose paraphrase of a line from The Shawshank Redemption
**found through the Aiming Low Daily paper...if you don't subscribe, you should