How much?

The Dash

By Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth
And spoke of the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth
And now only those who love her
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
The cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash. 

So think about this long and hard;
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
And more often wear a smile…
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.

So when your eulogy is read
With your life’s actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

That is an interesting article I came across many years back.

It makes one wonder how much one can accomplish in his lifetime? How much is actually MUCH?

Looking around me, there are people who heads organisations, who run their own business, who dedicated their life to making changes to this world, to make it a better place to live in. And I cannot help but wonder how are they able to accomplish so much more in the same amount of time.

Where did they get their energy from? they just seem like energiser bunny. 
How do they maximise their time to do so much more in the same amount of time?
How do they stay motivated all the way?

These questions always pops up in my head. For I always hope to do more in my life.
To be able to make changes and improvement to this world we live in. To be able to experience more in life.
To be able to bring joy and happiness to people around.

I look at the path ahead, the challenges that await. Almost all the time I just wish to jump on them imediately.
But as I grew older, I become more aware of my strengths and weaknesses, I begin to think if I am the best person for the job. It is no longer a question of how much I want to do it, but how suitable am I to the task?

Somehow, someday I still hope I can be someone that makes a difference. And make my dash a meaningful one.