Wise words from a Wise man !

I am so blessed to have a Great Uncle who is still alive. He is a true inspiration. He lived through the war, survived a sinking war ship and floating in the ocean, ate half a banana a day while digging ditches as a prisoner of war. Impressive right ?

Well one day while sitting talking to him, and listening to his many stories, as you can imagine he is a wealth of information. He said something to me that has stuck with me.

“When I could do it, I didn’t. And now that I want to do it, I cant”

This applies to so much of our lives, doesn’t it? Starting with our families, and having children. I think of that often, especially now that so many couples wait until their mid to late thirties to have children. When you are in your twenties and your body is more flexible, more fertile, more accommodating, we tend to put off starting a family for more money in the bank, a better job, a bigger house, expensive toys or travelling around the world. Somehow our thirties creep up on us and all of a sudden, we aren’t as fertile and we aren’t as flexible to bounce back. We end up looking at each other thinking “where did the time go ?”.

I also think of what my Uncle said when I think about our retirement funds. So many people don’t start saving or putting money into funds/RRSP until our 30’s and 40’s or sometimes even their 50’s. If only someone told us in our 20’s , when our disposable incomes were so huge , and spent on such wasteful things ( Tuesday twoonie beers at the local bar,dance mix tapes, reef sandles, buffalo jeans,). Just those ten simple years earlier, could make such a big difference in our comfort level of our senior years. All of a sudden we are seniors and wondering how we are going to survive on a canadian pension. If there will even be a pension for our generation.


Then there are the people in our lives that we have set aside, the people we may have stopped talking to, the people we have stopped visiting, the friends we have set aside because life is too busy, the people we should say “I love you ‘ to that we don’t, the phone calls we never get around to returning, the family members that live so close and yet we see so rarely, and the people we stopped spending as much time with as we could. How often do we put things off today for tomorrow? I think we do this too often and that we need to really do things NOW ! return calls NOW ! visit our friends and family NOW ! say “I love you “ NOW !Wasting time is the worst crime we can commit when it comes to love and friendship. We all say to ourselves “life is short “ but what does that really mean? It means life is short ! so get on with it !

Here are some friendly reminders:


1.Next time you are on the phone and about to say goodbye to your family , say “I love you “ before you say goodbye.

2. Next time you get a message from a friend or family member, set your DVR or PVR to record “Greys anatomy” and call them back.

3.Next time you are driving by your family or friends house, and you only have 5 minutes to spare, stop in anyways. A quick hug and 2 minute visit standing in the foyer with your shoes still on is so worth it !

4. When you are thinking about someone , and they are on your mind often, then pick up the phone and call them ! or get in the car and go over for a tea. There is a reason they are on your mind.

5. Hug your husband ! Hug your wife ! Hug your parents ! Hug your kids ! Hug your friends ! Hug your dog ! Hug your cat ! and then Hug them again ! Interesting fact, 30 seconds of hugging, helps makes you happier ! :)

And remember “When I could do it, I didn’t. And now that I want to do it, I cant “ Don't waste another second, just do it ! whatever "it" is for you, get to it now !