Have you ever questioned why people wait to show homage and gratitude to their loved ones once they are on their sickbed or have passed away? Think about it; it is during those times that familes pull together and share favorite memories or decide that it is important to spend time with their loved ones. We drop everything, rush to their side and say all of these wonderful things and make all of these wonderful tributes…..that is while they are sick or have passed already. Why is it that we cannot seem to say those same tributes and share those same memories when these people that are so valuable to us are already in the present?
This past week I decided to drive home to Frankfort KY and spend time with my parents just because I missed them! The hustle and bustle of work, being a wife, being a mother blah blah blah had pulled me away. The last time I had spent any genuine time with them was Christmas! Daily, as I read through my social media posts I notice that so many of my acquaintances have lost loved ones. Their words and posts resignate this unresounding pain of, “If I just had one more day with my loved one!” For me, this was a wake up call and a loud announcement to GIVE YOUR LOVED ONES THEIR FLOWERS WHILE THEY CAN STILL SMELL THEM! So this quality time became a priority for me during my Spring Break. I went home with no plan, no gifts, nothing but myself. And my parents and I had a great time! We ate dinner, laughed, watched the Temptations and the Jackson 5 and just reminisced! We laughed about things I did as a teenager (that were not so funny back then…) we talked about trips we took as a family, trials we have survived, the love each of them have for their grandchildren, and of course they both bragged about the good ole retired life! It was amazing to step into their world and have this time with them. This moment is one that I will cherish and am glad to have shared with my parents. What we did was not major but it was enough to show our love towards each other. So my question to you reader is why wait?
Life is uncertain; we all know our birthday but we do not know our death day. Instead of saying kind words to people when they are no longer here, wouldn’t it be awesome to say those words directly to your loved ones while they are still present? We have all had someone in our lives that has inspired us and motivated us. This could be through their actions, words, deeds, or simply their presence. These are the people/loved ones that deserve their roses today.
Truth be told, we often, in our lives, have so much to say to the people who have impacted or affected our lives in many ways, but never do. Life happens, it moves so fast that we never have the opportunity to tell them how we genuinely feel and what we think about them. There is a tendency to think that they already know or that what’s not spoken goes unsaid; this should not be. Because we take this time for granted….the inevitable happens. It is common to find us crying our eyes at funerals while feeling like we have been stabbed directly in the heart, because of a loss of a loved one. Internal guilt sits in as we begin to question why we hadn’t done more for them while alive such as spending more quality time, stating and verbalizing appreciation or admiration for them, sitting on the phone getting words of wisdom until the phone needs to be charged, making visits, telling them how much you love and appreciate them, and the feeling of ‘I wish I had done this while they were here…’ regrets. So I ask you today to reflect on those people in your lives that deserve their flowers. Make a solid plan to ensure that you express how you feel so that they can smell the flowers you have for them while they are still here!!
“Dead people receive more flowers than the living ones because regret is stronger than gratitude’, taken from The Diary of Anne Frank. Let this not be your account. Spread love like there is no tomorrow, and give your people their flowers. ❤
Alacrity4women 