Tomorrow is not promised to anyone

As I was drinking coffee and roaming my computer the line, "Tomorrow is not promised to anyone" caught my attention. How many people start the day, just like I am, drinking coffee and spending time with their computer? How many of those people never get to see the end of that day, much less tomorrow?  

The community of Brandon recently mourned the loss of a young 15-year-old. He did not take his own life, he died of a brain anomaly. Bravely, his parents gave consent for him to be an organ donor. This young man was deeply loved by family and friends, and among other things he had a promising hockey career. His celebration of life was at the Keystone Centre, everyone was asked to wear a Wheat King Jersey or one of their choosing. It makes you question, why did tomorrow not come for this young man? 

The NHL world is saddened by the devastating accident which took the lives of Johnny Gaudreau and his brother. They were in their hometown getting ready for their sister's wedding the next day, just riding bikes when they were struck by what is presumed a drunk driver.  I didn't even know these men, but I feel a sense of grief for the families, teammates and everyone that knew them. John's brother, Matthew, was going to be a first-time dad at the time of his death. Can you imagine, just going for a bike ride and never coming home again. It is tough to wrap our heads around that.  

A few months ago, the announcement was made that there will be no charges laid against the driver of the bus in the horrible crash at Carberry. Fifteen lives were lost that day and two more died in hospital in the next few weeks. The driver survived the accident but has permanent brain damage and is unable to go to trial. Because of his condition the RCMP will not be laying charges. It has been determined that the bus had blind spots, and it was driver neglect that caused the accident. Changes to the intersection are being considered. Some families have already forgiven the driver. I watched an interview of a family member, who expressed that she felt that the driver needs to be held accountable. I am not sure how I would feel if I were one of the family members. I think they will get more comfort seeing changes made to the intersection with the hopes that no one will go through the pain they endured. There will have to be a great deal of forgiveness in this situation. In a blink of an eye, seventeen people were denied "tomorrow".

I have always believed our start date is the day we were born and that our end date is already predetermined. We are here on earth for our lifetime, however long that may be. I live in absolute admiration of the people that understand life is a timeline. They do what they dreamed about doing. They are not waiting for the right moment. I do think that being retired provides us with more opportunities to do things, whenever we want. I also feel that when you are retired, you don't have the same energy or motivation. I am trying to be spontaneous. When I think of doing something I try to do it, or at the very least put the pieces in motion to get it done. I talk myself out of things more often than I like, so a small commitment helps me to make it happen. I believe that most of us are complacent, and that is okay, if we are not saying, "I wish I had done that!".