Near-Death? More Life!

We all saw it, that amazing photo of the plane that went down in the Hudson the other day. All those lucky people standing on the wings of US Airways flight 1549 as it slowly sank into the icy water. Survivors with nothing more than damp shoes and socks as a reminder of what could have been as ferryboats arrived to motor them back to dry land. The pilot, expertly and swiftly reacting to a flock of geese that took out not one but both engines, a reluctant hero. A horrible disaster averted. Elation, rather than tragedy, painting the faces of not only those who survived and their relieved families, but a recharged country, and world, desperately in need of some good news for a change.

I think I speak for many of you out there when I say that watching your life flash before your eyes, or vicariously viewing it through the eyes of those survivors of that doomed flight, reinvigorates your life. It makes you grateful, true, but also reminds us of the precariousness of life, the gift that we are given every day that allows us to breathe, to live. It also, no doubt, forces us to take accountability for our actions, our lives--are we living our lives, every day, the best we can? And why does it all too often take a near-death experience for us to embrace this precious and fragile thing called life?

Have you ever had a near-death experience? I have, a few of them.



Besides feeling relieved and elated, frightened and thankful, what else can we learn from near-death experiences? The answer, as always, can be found in this blog and my video site, livelife365.com.

LIVE LIFE!
EVERY DAY,
EVERY WAY.

Life, being a precious commodity, should never be taken for granted, and certainly never wasted. But so many of us, myself, at times, included, do just that. We need a near-death, or more optimistically put, a miracle, to awaken inside us what most of us already know. Why is that? I’m not sure, but I feel that sometimes life, with its repetition and routine, its nightly news forecasts of financial doom, war, uncertainty, and sadness, wears us down. To the point of forgetting how wonderful life actually is. And while most of us try to look at the more positive sides of life, we still, more times than we like to admit, forget to greet each day as an opportunity to do something great, practicing patience and kindness, being positive and enterprising, and embracing the gift that has been bestowed upon us. Because, like it or not, we are not going to get out of this alive.

Bringing us back to that miraculous landing on the Hudson that could have started this new year with tragedy, rather than hope. And reminding us how lucky we are.

Now, what are you going to do about it?

Huh?

We just got a fantastic wake-up call. Well, time to wake up, right?

Right. Wake up and not only smell the coffee (or green tea), but embrace this miracle called life every day. To its fullest. By being the best we can be and doing all that we can to live our lives 365.

Until next time…


peace,

Mike