No Regrets
I want to live life to the fullest and when I come to the end of it, have no regrets. I recently read a poem to that effect by Nadine Stair titled, "If I Had My Life to Live Over". In it, she writes, "I would take more chances. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers". I carry in my head a list of things I want to do before I die. I've checked off many of them, and add to the list every so often. Sometimes, something happens which prompts me to take stock of my life, reevaluate the list.
A friend was recently murdered in Africa. He was a humanitarian aid worker who had lived selflessly among the people of Mauritania for seven years. According to a small article in USA Today, Al Quaida claimed responsibility for his death. In the days immediately following, I tried to make sense of this tragedy.
I would consider what he did, where he lived, a hardship: The heat, the lack of creature comforts, threat of danger, the long, undefined work day, the immense distance from family, and financially scraping by would not be facets of an attractive job offer to most people. Yet he was there by choice. He appeared, in the pictures and notes we received, to love what he did, love the people he worked side by side with. An article in his hometown newspaper said, "He had a sense of urgency - to do all he could with his life while he was living." He was living life to the fullest. He was a harbinger of peace and hope. I doubt he had any regrets.
My "to do" list suddenly looks shallow and selfish.
A friend was recently murdered in Africa. He was a humanitarian aid worker who had lived selflessly among the people of Mauritania for seven years. According to a small article in USA Today, Al Quaida claimed responsibility for his death. In the days immediately following, I tried to make sense of this tragedy.
I would consider what he did, where he lived, a hardship: The heat, the lack of creature comforts, threat of danger, the long, undefined work day, the immense distance from family, and financially scraping by would not be facets of an attractive job offer to most people. Yet he was there by choice. He appeared, in the pictures and notes we received, to love what he did, love the people he worked side by side with. An article in his hometown newspaper said, "He had a sense of urgency - to do all he could with his life while he was living." He was living life to the fullest. He was a harbinger of peace and hope. I doubt he had any regrets.
My "to do" list suddenly looks shallow and selfish.
Shelli, sorry to hear of your loss. He sounds a great friend and great person. I can understand the appeal of a life with less conflict between the spiritual and the material. I aspire to better, but with children, I find it hard to let go of comfort and security, the things that keep me from taking bigger risks.
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