LIFE IS A GIFT

Its like an addiction, how I want to see the time fly. The minutes pass by and my heart races. The work piles up like the dumpster yet to be emptied behind my dorm—and I love it. Scrolling mindlessly pretending to know a few hundred faces, sending meaningless messages to the crevices of my brain, never to be retrieved again. Doing anything but something. Avoiding the encounter with productivity. Tears. Mood swings. Heavy eyes and clouded mind. Empty coffee mugs. Finally, the clock strikes 1 and the impending deadline pushes me to the finish line. 

Have you ever thought about the fact that we are able to drink water with a clear mind? Or that we’re able to perform bodily functions in privacy? Have you ever considered how blessed we are that we have clothes to cover our bodies, shoes to cover our feet, and roofs to cover our heads?

Have you ever thought about how many choices we have? We can choose between paper or plastic, chocolate or vanilla, hot or cold, large or extra-large, pink or purple, size 6 or 8, Ryan or Charlie, Christianity or Atheism, rock or pop, short-sleeved or long-sleeved, bright or dim, two blankets or one, cheeseburger or pizza, twitter or television, iPhone or droid… I could go on forever. 

We are in the top 10 richest countries in the world. We have a life expectancy at least DOUBLE of many countries. We are able to make choices freely. We have clean water to drink, cook with, bathe with, clean with, play in… while thousands die daily because they can’t manage to find any. 

Next time you complain that you dropped your $300 phone, lost your keys, missed your favorite TV show, couldn’t find your favorite cereal, or ran out of money to spend at the mall… consider the man who’s body is decomposing on the side of the road just 2 miles from clean water. The girl who was forced to give birth to a child at 14. The 8 year old boy who provides for his 3 year old sister because both of their parents are dead. The woman who was forced into the sex trade. 

APPRECIATE THE LIFE YOU HAVE. 

“Life wouldn’t be so ‘hard’ if we didn’t expect it to be so easy.”