A young man was saying a few words at a friend’s funeral and kept referring to the date his friend was born and died. When he mentioned the date of his friend’s demise, he was visibly moved. ‘What mattered most of all,’ he said, ‘was the dash between the years 1900 to 1970 because that dash represents all the time you spent alive on this earth, my friend. Only those who loved you and knew you well were aware of what that little dash was worth. It did not matter how much you owned. What mattered most was how you lived and loved and most of all - how you lived his dash.’
I wish we could simply slow down enough to consider what is true and what is real and try to understand the way others feel, be less quick to anger and show more appreciation; love the people in our lives like we’ve never loved before, and treat one another with respect and always remember that we never know how long this dash might last.
So, while your eulogy’s being read with your life’s actions to rehash, would you be proud of the things they say about how you spent your dash?
