Greetings!
Last night a childhood friend of mine was passing through town and came over for dinner with his wife and daughter. I’ve known Wes since the 7th grade, about 39 years! He loves cars and biking and always has some event that he either just came from, or is going to in the near future. He works hard and plays hard. As we got to sharing stories last night, I began to realize that most of my stories revolved around…. W-O-R-K. Ugh. Reality hit me like a ton of bricks.
Wes had stories of skiing, biking and car racing. I had stories about Twitter and blogging. He found a round trip air fare from Seattle to San Francisco on Virgin America Airlines for $97 and decided to take advantage of it. He did some research on hotels and the rates just about everywhere are very very low. Our little evening got me thinking, and I realized that I was forgetting to live life. There is more to life than trying to survive a recession.
To bring the point home, I was listening to National Public Radio this morning and Terry Gross was interviewing John Mellencamp. During the interview, John related a story about how he got the lyrics for Longest Day and basically said that his aging grandmother told him to live life every day, because life is short, even in its longest days.
If you are Living a Life of Excellence, I’m sure you are taking care of a lot of people. Your friends, your family, your staff. Don’t forget that you also need to take care of yourself. Live a Life of Excellence… Go do something for yourself today, and Don’t Forget to Enjoy the Ride!
Seems like once upon a time ago
I was where I was supposed to be
My vision was true and my heart was too
There was no end to what I could dream
I walked like a hero into the setting sun
Everyone called out my name
Death to me was just a mystery
I was too busy raising up Cain
But nothing lasts forever
Your best efforts don’t always pay
Sometimes you get sick
And don’t get better
That’s when life is short
Even in its longest days
So you pretend not to notice
That everything has changed
The way that you look
And the friends you once had
So you keep on acting the same
But deep down in your soul
You know you, you got no flame
And who knows then which way to go
Life is short even in its longest days
All I got here
Is a rear view mirror
Reflections of where I’ve been
So you tell yourself I’ll be back up on top some day
But you know there’s nothing waiting up there for you anyway
Nothing lasts forever
And your best efforts don’t always pay
Sometimes you get sick
And you don’t get better
That’s when life is short
Even in its longest days
Life is short
Even in its longest days