Live life to its fullest...
I try to be one of those people who live life to its fullest. It's not that I don't think about the future, it's just that I try to not put things off in the certainty that I will need things later that are more important. With the passing of our dear friend, Ian Cnulle (Greg Frank-Weiby), several people have mentioned the importance of this to me. We can rail against it, bemoan the unfairness, and grieve over the foibles of fate, but shit happens. You can do everything right, eat well, exercise, live your dreams, pursue happiness, and still be taken down. But if you make sure that you love what you are doing, believe in it, and fill your life with your friends, family, and meaningful tasks, even if shit happens you'll have made a difference.
Ian was an outstanding craftsman, artist, and mentor. While a void is left by the absence of such an amazing man, he influenced so many people, deciphered so many mysteries, and created so much beauty that I believe his influence will quite literally last generations.
I can only hope that I do so well. My life changed forever several years ago when I ended up in the hospital with internal bleeding, needing 4 units of blood. I didn't initially realize how close to death I was. It's easy to be in denial about that sort of thing. But it really brought home the fact that shit can happen completely out of the blue. You can be hit by a car, caught in a storm, or suffer a stroke. That most intimate betrayal, the betrayal of my own body, seemingly without warning or cause, was terrifying. Rather than live fearing the inevitability that eventually gets us all, I was forced to develop a certain kind of pragmatism. Yeah, shit can happen, get over it, and make sure that what you do and live means something. Do what matters. If it doesn't matter, let it go and make some different decisions. It's hard to do, people get stuck in ruts. It is sad that it often takes these tragedies to allow us insight. But do take the lesson, follow the example of people like Ian who lived what he believed. It's not trite because it's not true, it's trite because it should be something we all know: live life to its fullest.
Ian was an outstanding craftsman, artist, and mentor. While a void is left by the absence of such an amazing man, he influenced so many people, deciphered so many mysteries, and created so much beauty that I believe his influence will quite literally last generations.
I can only hope that I do so well. My life changed forever several years ago when I ended up in the hospital with internal bleeding, needing 4 units of blood. I didn't initially realize how close to death I was. It's easy to be in denial about that sort of thing. But it really brought home the fact that shit can happen completely out of the blue. You can be hit by a car, caught in a storm, or suffer a stroke. That most intimate betrayal, the betrayal of my own body, seemingly without warning or cause, was terrifying. Rather than live fearing the inevitability that eventually gets us all, I was forced to develop a certain kind of pragmatism. Yeah, shit can happen, get over it, and make sure that what you do and live means something. Do what matters. If it doesn't matter, let it go and make some different decisions. It's hard to do, people get stuck in ruts. It is sad that it often takes these tragedies to allow us insight. But do take the lesson, follow the example of people like Ian who lived what he believed. It's not trite because it's not true, it's trite because it should be something we all know: live life to its fullest.