The other night I was flipping through the channels and caught the end of the moving Armageddon – the one with Bruce Willis, Liv Tyler and Ben Afleck. I always cry when Bruce has his last conversation with Liv, a single father, saying good-bye to his only daughter just before he saves the world. I cry even harder just as he pushes the button on the nuke and his life with Liv, including the future he will miss, passes before his eyes.
And, if possible, I collapse further when all the military, NASA technicians, politicians and scientists embrace, slap each other on the back, whoop and holler with glee. But I am not watching them. I am watching Liv Tyler, separated from the group and looking down at the revelry, detached from it all. You can read it on her face, “yes, the world is saved, but I have just lost my father.”
Finally, Billy Bob Thorton’s character looks up and understands what she is going through. He goes to Liv and holds her while she cries on his shoulder.
This world is a hectic place. Our lives are busy. Our days are full. Most of us move about in a rush from one item to the next on our never-ending “to do” lists – never noticing the hurting people around us. You can spend your whole life doing the important, necessary, legal, moral and right things that make up our daily chores, but still miss out on our biggest opportunities to impact the lives around us.
You and I are not very likely to be called upon to literally save the world. But probably every week of our lives we have the opportunity to spend a few minutes making someone else’s life better with a card, a kind word, a phone call, a visit. It doesn’t take much time or even any money.
It does require an ability to focus on things outside of the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life.
I confess that this is a problem for me. At this point in my life I just want to come home from a long day at work, eat dinner and vegetate. I often end up doing household chores and just preparing for the next day. Sometimes I have work for DCM to do.
Recently, I had a friend in the hospital. I wasn’t able to visit her before I took off on a trip for work. When I got back, I came down with the flu. I still have not been to see her. I do call, but it isn’t the same for my friend. She feels the need to see me.
My life is busy. I am doing meaningful things – earning a living, working at DCM, trying to keep myself healthy with exercise a few days a week, trying to build my marriage. I find that there are people who are important to me who are getting left out of the equation. Yet, if you asked me I’d say relationships are very important to me, but, big sigh, there just aren’t enough hours in the day.
Truth is, I need to focus on each thing before me, and not lose focus on what I say is most important. So, I guess this blog is for me. But I hope it touches you too. There are enough hours in the day – not to meet everyone’s needs, but to meet a few, even in the busiest day. I’m going
to try. You should too.
Love, Nancy
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