“That Was the Life.”
- Pastor Philip Hickman
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Everywhere I turn in my house I see pictures of Carrie and our family. She wanted a Disney room in our home, and one wall is full of pictures from our Disney trips to Florida, California, and Hawaii. The hallways, the side of the refrigerator, and the top of the dresser – everywhere I look, there we are as a family. Several months back I caught myself walking past one of those pictures and simply saying to myself, “That was the life”. Another day and another picture and I would say the same thing, “That was the life”. Whether it was a picture of just the two of us, or us and our kids, or our whole family, we are all there, together, and happy. That was the life!
You see, while I’ve tried to live with gratitude at the forefront of my mind, there are still times I took for granted the life we had. Working extra hours to try and impress others, neglecting a goodnight kiss because I was tired and already in my “sleepy position”, minor annoyances that I let bother me, or worrying over many trivial things. I know I’m not the only one. So, why do we routinely give our precious time to smaller things while neglecting the most important things in life? I wish I knew and, sadly, we don’t get a redo.
Now I don’t know how OneDrive works, if you do maybe you can explain it to me. But now, every day, I get picture memories that pop up from that day over the years. What I don’t understand is where these pictures come from. Many, I swear I have never seen! But they often bring a smile and another soft, “That was the life”.
So, this is my encouragement to you today, in this brief post – If you have a loving and healthy family, your BEST DAY IS TODAY! If your family is unloving but healthy, work on it. If your family is loving but unhealthy, work on it. Because for you today, “this is the life!”
The truth is, the kids grow up way too fast and, sometimes, a health crisis comes. But, if your family is blessed with love and health, don’t waste today!
Refrain from working unnecessarily long hours, kiss goodnight every night, have family dinners together, enjoy your kids, take vacations (previous post), laugh more and be annoyed less, go on dates, and tell the Lord every single day, “LORD, THANK YOU FOR YOUR RICHEST BLESSINGS IN MY LIFE”!
Gratitude is a way of reminding us what remains of our loved ones is a gift of having known them, loved them & been loved by them. A memory that makesyou laugh, the sound of their voice in your head, the way their influence still shapes who you are. Grief pulls you back to the pain of what's gone, gratitude points you toward what will always stay with you. Neither one cancels each other out. They move together, sometimes shifting, sometimes overlapping, but always reminding us that grief only exists because love did first. It's proof that love doesn't end even when life does.
Shortly after I lost my Dad, and we were very close, I was in my garage…
Well said
Amen! Thank you for the reminder.