BY SHARON VAN ARNEMAN
Earlier this week, a friend sent me a touching video clip of CNN anchor Sara Sidner telling her viewers that she has been diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Fighting back tears, the 51-year-old veteran journalist shared: “Now here is something I could never, ever have predicted would happen to me. I have thanked cancer for choosing me. I’m learning that no matter what hell we go through in life, that I am still madly in love with this life and just being alive feels really different for me now. I am happier because I don’t stress about foolish, little things that used to annoy me. And now, every single day that I breathe another breath, I can celebrate that I am still here with you. I am here with my co-anchors, my colleagues, my family – and I can love and cry and laugh and hope. And that, my dear friends, is enough.”
Have you ever noticed that when, for one reason or other, the threat of death lunges at us, we instinctively find ourselves fighting with all our might to hold on to life. In a flash, we realize just how short and precious life is, because inherent in all of us is the will to live. It doesn’t matter how bad things are, people love life. We all know of people who have suffered the most horrendous things, but have refused to just give up and die. We have heard stories of people who have survived fires, extreme cold, beatings, bear mauling, shark attacks, torture, injustice, ailments, loss, wrongful imprisonment, abuse and every conceivable kind of difficulty, but still they cherish life and recognize it as a sacred gift from God.
What an indictment to those of us who have a relatively wonderful life, but spend our time griping and complaining whenever things start to get a little difficult. I like it when I ask someone how he or she is doing and the person replies, “Thank God for life.” That tells me that this person has a right perspective on things. So when my attitude toward life begins to get lackadaisical, I know it is time that I shape up, because it’s not too late to be what I might have been. Life is lived every single day; it is not standing in the shadows waiting patiently for a sign indicating that I am ready. Having great plans and good intentions are wonderful, but that is not enough. We have to live life with enthusiasm: Otherwise, before we know it, the years will slip away, and the life we had always been intending to live, will remain just that – an intention.
Sometimes, it takes a close encounter with death to shake us up and make us see how sweet and valuable life is. All of a sudden, we gain fresh appreciation for the simple pleasures of being able to see and hear, and taste and smell, and touch and move, and walk and talk. We see the beauty of the world around us with new eyes. Our relationships become more meaningful as we take time to really listen, to love, to care, to reach out, to forgive, to encourage and to be a blessing. A spirit of thankfulness replaces our grouchy disposition; smiles chase away ugly frowns; and we take the bull by the horns and live life zestfully – for whatever our lot is, this is our life and we are to live it with passion.
To contact Sharon, email: allbecauseofgrace@gmail.com
