My son texted me. As he put it, “This is a really sad FYI.” When my son was too old for pre-school but too young to be left alone at home while I went to work, Judy appeared like a miracle. She lived near us, with a son the same age as mine, in the same school. Oh my. But most important, she was a gem – a treasure, a sweetheart. She loved her family and relished her role as overseer of a most important function: the raising of “good” people. How fortunate was I – and my son, for that matter! But the news? Judy had died.
AFL’s Jo-Anne Lema
We moved from the old neighborhood a couple years ago and Judy and I lost touch. At a relatively young age, she had succumbed to cancer. And I felt overwhelmed with guilt.
Our new home is several states away from the old, but as fate would have it, it turned out I would be in Judy’s “region” on business the day of her wake. And attending her wake was a blessing for my soul.
No place to park. They were lined up out the door. And I wondered – were these people – like me – saddened that they hadn’t made the time to let Judy know – while she was alive – how much she meant to them.
Yes, I let her husband know that Judy was more than a second mother to my son. She didn’t play second fiddle to ANYone. When Judy mothered, she mothered! And yes, her husband appreciated my words. But why hadn’t I made the time to let HER know how I felt – how I truly treasured her.
We all have “Judy’s” in our lives. People who matter. True treasures, true jewels, true gems. So why are we so reticent to share our gratitude. What is so much more important than people – and their feelings?
Bottom line….is there someone in your life who matters? (Please say there is!) And, please let that person know that you not only “appreciate and treasure them” – but WHY you feel that way. Trust me. Not only will the recipient of your words feel marvelous, so will you!
I did NOT make the time – when it mattered. But I’m learning the lesson. I’ll be spending time, starting now and over the next few days placing calls. I want folks to know that their lives matter, they influence me in a positive way, and I’m better person for having known them. I want them to hear it now. The pathway to failure is lined with the phrase, “later, later later.”
