What I could have said....

The title to this blog post couldn't be more perfect, but at the time I wrote it, I had no idea of why. Originally I was going to post about having that perfect "come back" line that seems to allude you at the time. You know someone says something particularly rude to you while you stand dumb struck without much to say except "oh yeah?" Then later in the day, in your head, your witty response is like a Don Rickles comedy act, and you think, "wish I had of said that!"

Well, now I see it differently.

A colleague of mine was killed in an accident on Friday, coming home from seeing her horse in Petaluma. She was driving back on a bit of a winding but flat road, with her two dogs in the car. For whatever reason she veered off the road, flipped the car and ending up dying in the wreck along with her two dogs. She was my age, or close to it. She had a husband who loved her and one daughter, our daughter's age or close to it. She and I were friends, or close to it. We definitely were both Realtors specializing in the same area of Marin. She was an extremely vibrant person who loved her life. She is gone. I am not. Now I am thinking of the things I could have said differently.

None of us know how much time we have been given. As a result many of us waste that time in petty arguments, stressful jobs, loveless marriages, bitter divorces, hating neighbors, envying other's success, drinking too much, missing the beauty around us ... wasting it.

I don't want to waste anything.

These moments in life often call for us to assess how we are doing in our lives. Are we making the most of what we have been given. I truly think I strive to live life fully and with purpose. It wasn't always that way, and it still isn't ALWAYS that way. But this weekend I was able to walk with my friend Patti to Cavallo Point, hopefully showing along the way how much our friendship means. I was able to see Joe's ball game and watch Olivia play on the play equipment. I was able to walk through my client's new house and watch the excitement on their faces and the exhilaration on their daughter face as Pyper ran through bright green grass that was soon to be her back yard. I was able to  dance with my dogs. I was blessed to spend time with my sweet husband. I could see the roses blooming on my patio and see as Oregon Juncos vied for bird seed on my father in law's steps. We talked with a woman from Tonga and spoke about my love of that wonderfully beautiful place with soulful people. We ate "beer can" Chicken on a balmy Spring evening and listened to Glenn's Dad talk about days gone by. I was able to remind myself this day isn't gone, it is here, to take in, record and remember.

What will you do this week to remind yourself of this gift you've been given. Will you look at it sitting on a shelf and admire it, or will you pick it up, embrace it, wrap yourself in it and live it?

Rest in Peace Marguerite. God Bless your family and help them remember how you lived your life ...