"Learn to appreciate what you have, before time makes you appreciate what you had."

I received some REALLY sad/bad news last night. Then I heard it straight from the source tonight.

There are several harsh realities in life... things far more important than difficult times, disappointments, failures, etc. What I am talking about is sicknesses- such as cancer. Cancer is not something you choose but rather something that chooses you. The dreadful thing about this sickness is that there is no cure and new forms of cancer are found daily.

Over the last few years I have seen and heard of people who have cancer, people who have beat cancer and people who have lost their battle. It is sad. Both of my grandfathers have died from different forms of cancer. It is heartbreaking the amount of people and their families fighting this illness. Everyone knows someone or of someone touched by the big "C".

The point of this post it to let people know that life is short. As you know, once you are out of school and in the working world TIME FLIES. Make the best of it. Tell your loved ones that you love them and let them know how important they really are. Treat your family members with love and respect- just because they are here today does not necessarily mean they will be here tomorrow.

I know this sounds cliche but I had to let out what I have been feeling. Do not put off phone calls or cards.... pick up the phone and take those 10-20 minutes out of your busy day to let someone know you were thinking of them. Use the $ .32 or $ .42 stamps (however much they are now) to send a card or letter just to let someone know you were thinking of them. After all, it is the small gestures that REALLY mean the most. It is those small gestures that people will remember.

Regrets. I know you don't want a loved one to pass on without you telling them how you feel. So take the time NOW to do the things you want to do but are too busy to do.... or THINK you are too busy to do. Otherwise, you will be wasting a lot more time than it would have taken with regrets. (Trust me, I know a lot about regrets and you do NOT want to be stuck with  "what if's"!)

Chances are so hard to come by and the second one is impossible to find.

The lesson of the day for today is: It is better to regret something you have done than regret something you haven't.

Think about it! If you have done something and regret it then there is nothing you can do now... nothing to change the way things played out, no way to change the outcome. HOWEVER, if you did NOT do something you are ALWAYS wondering, "What if?" In my opinion that is the worst thing you can think about. All the different scenarios running through your head, all the possible outcomes. It can drive a person mad.

Why, you ask, am I thinking about this? Well I had an interview today at an AMAZING place. All I had to do was do a 5 minute presentation on recruiting for the college and it had to be creative! Well I did a power point on lots of information about the college but it had no pizazz! Nothing I had stood out. I had 2 days to work on it and I stayed up late working on it and got up early to work on it but it lacked the main component they were looking for.... CREATIVENESS. I didn't want to embarrass myself and was worried about wasting their time. So, I did not go. As soon as I hung up the phone from cancelling the interview I felt relieved but filled with regret too. :-(

I started thinking several questions:
What if I was being too critical of my own work? Usually we are our own worst critics? Aren't we?
What if I went to the interview and they liked my stuff? What if I got the job?
What if I burned a bridge God was laying out for me?

I walked around the rest of the day feeling horrible. As most of you know, regret is not a good feeling. I realized there is nothing more I can do with this situation.... I should not dwell on it anymore than I already have. I decided that I learned an important lesson thorough this debacle so I should move on.

But what if.....??