Because there might not be a tomorrow.
We all know this, of course, somewhere deep in our subconscious minds. We know in an intellectual sense that one day, we will die, and be no more (that last part is obviously due to my own belief system – being non-religious, I believe this life is all I have, and all I ever will have, which makes it infinitely precious to me).
But do you live with a conscious awareness of this in your every-day life?
It was brought home to me earlier today when I heard of the death of a friend. Julie-Ann Twigg – leader of the Down Under Street Team on Etsy – a big, vibrant group of women who express their creative souls in crafting – died suddenly today. She was the only survivor of the light plane crash in Victoria, and by all accounts, she was getting better.
But her body was too broken to go on – and perhaps finding out about the death of her beloved daughter meant her mind was in no state to face her own healing. Whatever happened, she is gone, never to start another chat thread, help a new team member, exult in the victory of her favourite footy team, or make a funny comment.
I know it may sound strange to talk about her in that way, but words on a screen were the only medium through which I knew J-A. The internet is a funny place – it allows us to communicate with so many people that we would have never known in our everyday lives – but we feel that we know them so well, nonetheless.
The death of someone you know is one of those moments where your own mortality is thrown up into sharp relief.
It might be a moment where you ‘wake up’ – like Neo in the Matrix – and realise that you don’t actually know how the hell you got here, or where you really are.
What happened to the life I’d planned for myself when I was a child? The dreams I had?
Are you living the life of your dreams? Are you achieving what you would like to?Â
Most importantly – do you wake up every day with joy at the thought of how you’re going to spend the hours in front of you?
I hope so.
Because if you don’t now, then when?
When you live your life in alignment with your passions and your dreams, every day is a joy.
When I look at my life – which is now, more than ever, in alignment with my passions, and therefore, a joy to live – I am happier than I have ever been.
Sure, there are still things I’d like to change, improvements I’d like to make. There are aspects of my life (living in just two rooms, having to walk through the rain to get to a bathroom) that other people might cringe at. And you know what? That doesn’t matter, because my life is mine, not anyone else’s.
But I’m closer than ever before, and making an effort each day to move in the right direction.
When I was younger, working in jobs I liked but didn’t love; in a relationship that was good but that had fatal flaws; with a mental state that was far from equanimous, every day saw unhappiness and dissatisfaction with my life.
Oh, if only I could go back and tell myself – ‘it will be okay, you can’t even imagine the joy that’s in your future – just trust in yourself’.
So, I’m going to take this opportunity to tell you, instead.
Listen to yourself.
Trust in yourself.
Follow your dreams.
Do it today.
Because there might not be another chance tomorrow.
What’s ONE dream you could start bringing into reality, right now? Share it in the comments…
***
Rest in peace, dear Julie-Ann – my heart goes out to your husband, children, and the rest of your family and friends. I can only hope with all of my heart that they will find the strength to go on without you.
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Image found via Pinterest. I was unable to find the original source, so please let me know if you happen to know who the artist is. Thank you .
I saw this in the news just now. So so sad, and you are right Jess, that it takes a tragedy like this to pull you up and make us realize life is so precious.
As for my dreams, small things first, finish sewing that dress, plant more vegies, herbs and flowers so that my little patch of the world is a colourful healthy one and for one big dream to travel overseas with my family -step out of our comfort zone.
Great post Jess and my thoughts are with Julie Anns family
May she rest in peace x
What you say is so true, we must live as fully as we can, and build our happiness, no one else will do it for us, though our special loved ones and friends will do it with us.
And whenever there was someone who needed help and encouragement as they built their happiness, Julie-Ann, like many of the wonderful DUST members would always give that precious kind word and inspiration.
You too are an inspiration, Jess.
I really don’t understand how anyone can carry on after an experience like this. To lose your daughter in such tragic circumstances is already too much a burden for somebody to bear, but to then lose your wife on the day of your daughter’s funeral?
Can’t wrap my head around it. I’m so sorry that you have lost a friend today.
Such a sad day for that family. But so true about living your life to the fullest. After losing my younger sister earlier this year I have decided to start doing all the things I have wanted to do for years. The truth is there may not be a tomorrow so you need to follow your dreams and live life to the fullest. My heart goes out to the family and to you Jess but she was an amazing woman and has made an impact on so many people. So sorry to here that you have lost a very dear friend.
Jess what a heartfelt post.
It’s so true what you say… tomorrow can be elusive and the chase can be so hard.
Right now, I’m working towards a simpler life, making sure I don’t get caught up in the sadness of the things I can’t control and endeavoring to bring my passion closer with every decision.
What could be more fitting as a warm tribute to a loved one than to share the dreams we all hope to achieve. I’m sure she would have loved such a gesture.
This is such a thoughtful post, Jess and so very true.
I remember Julie-Ann when I was first joining DUST and very nervous. She was a wonderful friendly welcoming person. May she Rest in Peace.
I am slowly working towards living my dreams and to an extent I already am. Things may not be perfect but I love what I do and I wouldn’t want to have it any other way.
xx
An excellent post, Jess. And such a sad story to hear. I feel sorry for her family and friends going through this right now.
My dream is to find a nicer job so I can wake up a little bit happier. I’m getting there slowly but surely with my studying 🙂
I am very saddened to hear about Julie-Ann. You are right about the internet, Jess. I feel like Julie-Ann is my friend that I met in the DUST forums and I wish the best that can be for her family and friends. I didn’t ever dream I would say this; I am a (rather) old girl who did not grow up with computers and I really steer away from general social networking sites and blogs. Because there is a lot of ordinariness there. But Julie-Ann stood out with her kindness, helpfulness and generosity of spirit.
Thanks for this Jess, very well written.
As you know we suffered a loss nearly 6yrs ago and sadly it brought everything to a grinding halt instead of giving us the kick in the pants to get on with our dreams.
I was recently spending time with my Mum and my Aunt and I lamented that my home/garden etc wasn’t how I’d always wanted it to be when I was little. They reminded me the only person stopping that from happening was me.
May Julie-Ann rest in peace and may the rest of us reconnect with who we meant ourselves to be!
Kell
Beautiful and wise words Jess….. thankyou
Love Light and Rainbows
Megg
Such a lovely post. I was so sad to read in the paper today that we had lost Julie-Anne. I thought she was gunna make it. So sad and definitely a reminder to embrace your life and make sure it’s going where you want it too. Hugs to all my fellow dusters and to the Twigg family. xx
What a horribly tragic event, my thoughts go out to anyone who was touched by Julie-Anne – I didn’t know her but it sounds like she was an inspiring, vibrant lady.
A lovely post Jess. Tragic news like this does bring about reflection, it always makes me want to hug my husband and tell my mum I love her and see my step-sons and my nephews, to reach out and connect with those you love, nothing else really matters in the end! And living our dreams – how lucky we are that we live in parts of the world that are relatively wealthy, stable, free! Maybe it puts an even bigger responsibility on us to think about our path, acknowledge those opportunities, and find happiness in our world.
My friend Kayla Blackey painted that! 😀 She’s the best!
Brilliant, thank you, Cat!!
Is there a way I can order a print of it? Â
Thanks,Â
Fawn
Does she have prints available of this? I see it all over the web with no info about who the artist is 🙁
I found that the artist of this Nanda Correa: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nanda_correa/5034296228/
http://kammiatelier.com/
Thanks Jess for this post. It came at such a good time for me…just what I’ve been thinking about for the last few days.My dream is to be a knitwear designer. I struggle because the rest of my life so often eats up my time, so that I end up with much less time than I wish for designing. In the past few weeks though, I’ve recommitted myself to pursuing my dream, making it happen in small steps every day, taking what time I can. One of the hard things sometimes, though, is justifying it to others when at this point it doesn’t make any money yet.
I wanted to add, that for me, the money is not the important part, it’s this strong creative desire.