The title of this post comes from a traffic sign I saw this weekend. In many ways, it sums up my thoughts this past week.
What I mean is that everyone has to exit this world. It’s not optional.
Most of us think we know when we’ll exit, say at the age of 85 or 90, after a good long life. We think we will have our health until we breathe our last, then we’ll go in peace. But friends, this is rarely the case. We usually aren’t so fortunate.
This past week, one of my coworkers was not so fortunate. He had just celebrated his 30th birthday last weekend, and on Tuesday, he was dead. Killed in a car accident, after colliding with a deer on the way into work.
His sudden death hit me hard because I worked with him on a daily basis. He wasn’t just another employee somewhere in the plant; he was someone I interacted with…daily. Now, I don’t.
How do you deal with that? How do you move on? What do you say?
About seven years ago, I had three close calls in the matter of a couple months. Two years ago, I had another close call. These events made painfully aware of how precious life is. Split seconds…the difference between life and death.
It’s times like these you get your life in order. Live fully for today. That doesn’t mean you have to wear a smile plastered to your face everyday, pretending everything is okay. It means you live in reality. You live in the present. Embrace the moment.
Follow the signs; exits have been changed.
Omer Redden 