We as a country search for meaning in the tragedy – imaginary lines are erased and we join in the pain of the families who lost their loved ones… and the inevitable torment of the survivors and their loved ones in the days to come.
In a moment, they were gone.
If you knew you had one last moment, what would you feel?
Would it be a moment of Love? Forgiveness?
Would it be a moment of regret? loneliness?
How do you color your moments, when you believe they are unlimited? Do you color in shades of Blame? Of Fear?
Or in shades of Empathy and Caring? Of Love?
When we think it’s our last, the power struggles that now seem so important, seem to fall away, and what’s real comes rushing through; because fear is erased, we can love freely, without worrying about how it’s going to come back to hurt us. Because this is the only moment we have.
It’s easy to wax poetic about the importance of expressing love and empathy at times like this; the harder task is on a daily basis, making decisions about how we want to be in this world; when something isn’t working, we tend to get angry and frustrated at it, rather than wondering about a solution. Slow down – the solution may be as long-term as the problem, but at least you’re headed in a better direction. You can feel more engaged, less alone – it’s surprising how alone you can feel, even when you are constantly surrounded by people…
What would happen if you reached out to the people who spring to mind when you think of your one last moment? What if you told them exactly how it felt, and how you want your life to better reflect that feeling? What if you sought solutions together? What if you had the audacity to really “…live as if this is all there is…”*?!
*Mary Anne Radmacher
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