Friday Thought : Things that Can't Wait

This week I had the privilege of helping two families in the middle of hard seasons.

One—a brother and sister as they packed up their parents’ home. Both passed of them past in the last year, and now, their children are trying to work through what has been left behind. Every box, every piece of furniture seemed to carry a story, and some of them were too heavy to name. You could feel it in the silence between them, the long pauses as they decided what to keep, what to let go. How can any of it be called trash? What is the price of Dad’s favorite chair, of Mom’s knick-knacks?

The other—a couple who just received news no one ever wants to hear. With their time together now feeling shorter than it should, they’re finally finishing projects and planning the bucket-list trip they’ve been putting off “until things settled down.” The wife - the mother - is the sweetest lady. She loves her family and is never shy of sharing a kind word. Amid the tears, she smiles, laughs, and hopes.

And it was all very sobering.

This work—hauling, cleaning, sorting—does more than tire my body. It works on my heart.
In moments like these, I have a unique opportunity to see, and be reminded of, what truly matters.
And what doesn’t.

It’s easy to spend the drive home in reflection, and wonder . . . how many of us are still putting off the things that really matter?

We convince ourselves there’s plenty of time. That someday we’ll get around to it. But someday is fragile.

The words left unsaid.
The trip we keep dreaming about but never book.
The quiet dinner without the phones.
The porch swing at sunset.
The apology that’s overdue.
The hug we’ve been meaning to give.
The time with our kids before they grow up and leave.

Not everything can wait.

And maybe that’s the gift of this work: the reminder to take stock now. To say what needs to be said. To do what needs to be done. To love the people we love, while we still have the chance to love them well.

Because “someday” is already here. Probably more than we, than I, would like to admit.

That's what I've been thinking about this week.

Friday Thought : How quickly Moments turn to Memories.

Today, I reconnected with an old friend. And it was so very good. Largely because, as I recently told my wife, life is lonely.

I don’t know about you, but with a house full of kiddos, bills to pay, ruts to get out of, and dreams to pursue (plus taking my wife out on a date . . . every year or so), there just doesn’t seem to be enough time to pursue meaningful relationships. To invest deeply in the spare moments I have with those around me.

Said more honestly, making time for friends and family members isn’t a priority. Not because I don’t care, but because if I don’t answer that call or text that friend, there are no immediate consequences, no tangible accountability. When I don’t fix that leaky faucet, however, or work a little extra to pay off some bills, the consequences are immediate. So I do what is needed to get by today, tomorrow, and next week because I have to.

Then suddenly, pictures of family trips, which always seem like they happened just yesterday, appear in my Facebook Memories, from four years ago (pictured above) and rather quickly, favorite moments become memories, as time quickly passes on.

This past week, as loneliness has crept in and the pressures of getting caught up on tasks and to-dos have weighed heavy, a call from an old friend has reminded me to find balance. To sit a little longer with my wife on a Saturday morning, sipping coffee. To read just one more book with my six-year-old rather than shooing him off to bed. To put off paying that bill just one more month because right now, I have a house full of kiddos and memories that need making.

But also, answer (or make) the call of an old friend, even when I have emails to write, and check in on each other because that too is life. And those we love are what we live life for.

So thank you, Friend, for making the time this morning. I know I needed it.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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