We went to the funeral of friend’s mom recently. She died suddenly of a heart attack while at home with her husband, who was only into his second week of retirement. When my father-in-law Gary heard the news and learned that they were both in the same age range, he reflected, “Wow. I guess I’m really on borrowed time.”
He’s right. But not just because he was diagnosed with severe rheumatoid arthritis in his twenties and probably hasn’t had a pain-free day since then. And not just because he continues to amaze his doctors with how long he’s been able to keep on going. No, he’s right because we are ALL on borrowed time.
That becomes obvious when we hear of sudden heart attacks and car accidents. When we are faced with stories of tornadoes that drop out of the sky, ending lives at random, or see the aftermath of troubled souls who decided children are suitable targets for acts of terrorism.
Life expectancy may be 78 but that doesn’t mean we can expect to make it there.
Gary is on borrowed time. I’m on borrowed time. And so are you. The real question is, how are we investing this time we are borrowing?
By watching more TV? Keeping busy with activities that don’t really matter? Staying put on a career path we don’t really like?
Or are we building something wonderful by living with a sense of urgency and making hard choices that lead to a better story and a lasting legacy?
The choice is yours. But hurry, the clock is ticking.
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