If I had my life to live over

If I had my life to live over again, I'd dare to make more mistakes next time.

I would relax. I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I know of very few things that I would take seriously. I would take more trips. I would climb more mountains, swim more rivers and watch more sunsets. I would do more walking. And looking. I would eat more ice cream.

And less beans.

I would perhaps have more actual troubles, but fewer imaginary ones.

Oh, I've had my moments, and if I had it to do over again, I'd have more of them. In fact I'd try to have nothing else. Just moments. One after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day.

If I had my life to live over, I would travel lighter next time. I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would play hooky more. I would go to more dances. I would ride on more merry-go-rounds.

I would pick more daisies.

That was my momma's favorite poem. Not because she lived with regrets; because she always reminded her two girls to value the simple things that are so often taken for granted. Like time.

I still cannot rightly express what a beautiful job my sister Melissa did reciting this poem at my mother's celebration of life ceremony. In those moments, I was back to being a little girl again, completely and totally awestruck by my big sister's strength, and sheer radiance.  Fact is, Melissa still doesn't know how much she honored her mother through those words--and how good a care she has taken of her little sister over the past twelve months. Even putting my pain ahead of her own.

So as we soon come up on a year of missing our momma, and with my sister asking when I'll post on it again--a professor, she's not one for the marketing blogs!--this one is for her. The picture above is my most favorite of them. Because they're swinging, sure, but more so because momma is smiling at her happy daughter (just click on the pic to make it larger). Here are beautiful pictures and stories of my mother as well as this 60-second video below (RSS and email subscribers, just click through to view).

Hey, it won't bother me a bit if you never take a word of my advice. Except this one: all we have is time (or moments). No super-savings plan or shrewd strategy will buy you a moment more. It matters what you do with your time, how much you enjoy it and with whom you spend it. Because of the simple fact that we don't get those moments back.

(Which is the answer to why life is so precious.)