REFLECTIONS
March 20, 2004
 
…whoever lives and believes in me will never die.
                                         John 11:26
 
 
Awakening To Mortality…
            Only a short few weeks had passed since he was honored as his employer’s employee of the year. The plaque in his honor, the polish still bright and shining, hung in the employer’s entry as encouragement to others to be like him. Then in the brevity of a moment he was gone—taken by the suddenness of a violent crash.
Whether from the unexpected loss of someone in your life, a trip to the emergency room with chest pains, or a doctor’s message that you are suffering from a threatening disease, there comes a time in most of our lives when we deal with the reality of our own mortality—truly deal with it. I wondered about that in my younger years. I wondered about it because older people seemed to fear death less than I did. I saw this quality up close in my grandparents. I remember wondering if maybe one special day they figured the whole thing out—life and how to live it—death and how to face it.
A day came several years ago when I was called to face my own mortality. The doctor described my condition using the “C” word. In those days that followed, I felt nearer to God than I could have ever imagined and because of his nearness I experienced a peace that is beyond my ability to describe. Let’s just call it complete.
Probably that experience also served to kindle my passion for legacy—to honor my heritage, but even more to pass on the legacy. I hope to leave a legacy of love and peace. Love is what life is all about. And peace comes with the awakening that mortality is real—but so is everlasting life.
           
 
You are the light of the world,
Richard Ì


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