When I’m lying in bed at night, before I go to sleep, I sometimes ask myself, “Are you satisfied with your life? Are there things you want to be doing that you haven’t done yet? Before you leave this life, will you do those things? How will you feel going back to the other side with those things undone?”
I’m very happy with what I’ve done in this life, but there are indeed a few more things I’d like to do before this incarnation ends. It’s so important to take time to check in with yourself and see if you’re living the life you desire, if you’re accomplishing what you intended to accomplish, if you’re extracting every ounce of joy out of life that is yours to have.
In the end only you will judge your life. You will watch your life unfold on the other side during your life review. You will no doubt see things that troubled you, that inspired you, that made you feel complete, and maybe some things you wish you hadn’t done.
This life is a gift. You chose to come here.
On your tombstone there will be a beginning date and an end date. In between those years is the dash, and that’s where the entirety of your incarnation lies.
So the question is, when the end comes, how will you feel about how you lived your dash?
Check out this marvelous poem written by Linda Ellis about the dash.
THE DASH
By Linda Ellis, Copyright © 2020 Inspire Kindness, thedashpoem.com
I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend. He referred to the dates on the tombstone from the beginning… to the end.
He noted that first came the date of birth and spoke of the following date with tears, but he said what mattered most of all was the dash between those years.
For that dash represents all the time they spent alive on earth, and now only those who loved them know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not, how much we own, the cars… the house… the cash. What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard; are there things you’d like to change? For you never know how much time is left that still can be rearranged.
To be less quick to anger and show appreciation more, and love the people in our lives like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect and more often wear a smile… remembering that this special dash might only last a little while.
So when your eulogy is being read, with your life’s actions to rehash, would you be proud of the things they say about how you lived your dash?
