We Cannot Live Just For Today!

The concept of "Live Well Today For Tomorrow We May Die" was in vogue during the Hippie Era.

Well, the Hippie Era ended about 30 - 40 years ago. The concept of doing just what suits you has never worked and still that applies to today.

One time in the 80s when I was in Victoria on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, I noticed that something seemed strangely familiar to me. At that time, Victoria's inner city reminded me very much of the Yorkville District in what was then midtown Toronto. There were bunches of people old enough to be dressed in suits. carrying briefcases and supporting families, homes and children in school who were roller-skating and basically doing nothing. They were frittering away their time.

"Live today, for tomorrow we may die!"

Well, guess what? Those same people are most likely on British Columbia's welfare rolls and their life is miserable.

We learn very early - if we are taught and if we pay attention - that we cannot just live for today.

I saw an article today that proclaims the world's end May 21, 2011. Well, gee, that would mean that there is no need to save any money, stock the pantry, pay back loans . . . you get it.

You know that is not going to happen! Or, you at least have enough doubt to not take a chance on having nothing on May 22nd!

Many times for various cults, they have found that similar predictions did not come true. So, they were left with bills to pay, no place to live and no food to eat.

There is another thing we learn even more about as we age. We learn that we have absolutely NO idea of what might happen tomorrow. The younger we are, the more we believe we control our destiny. As we age, we see how little we know about the future and what might happen tomorrow.

So, we try very hard to be kind to people, to mend any broken relationships. We know that tomorrow things could be very different.

Someone we ignored or belittled yesterday could die today.

Someone we were unkind with could become physically disabled tomorrow.

The one truth we know about life is that we do not know about what will happen next. We can plan: we can predict and we can think we are ready for tomorrow, but the truth is we do not know what tomorrow brings.

It is legion the numbers of people who had a falling out with someone and did not mend a slight or patch an argument until years later.

That is no way to live.

We learn every day we are on this earth that right now is all we know. We need to be kind and gentle to family, friends and every person we have contact with because tomorrow, that person or situation may no longer exist.

If you do not believe me, ask some of your older friends and relatives and many of them will have stories of people who were thriving, well and healthy one day and totally disabled or dead the next.

We must never take tomorrow for granted because some day tomorrow does not come, and that is not because the world is going to end but rather because circumstances change.

God Bless and may you live every day to the fullest and best you can. Blessings!