While I had originally written on an entirely different topic for this article, the events of the past couple of days has moved me to go another direction.

Have you ever heard the saying “in a blink of an eye”?  This phrase is used to refer to great occurrences, as well as devastation in one’s life.  A financial windfall, to the loss of a friend, each has significant impact to our lives.

By now, you are already asking, “where are you going with this”?

Thinking about “in the blink of an eye”, there is a point I hope to make. We live in a light speed pace, where it seems, (at least to me) that the older we get, the faster the days, and years go by.

This past week, Hurricane Sandy brought a level of devastation unrealized in my life, and the lives of many of our friends, and family. Billions of dollars in property loss, job loss, possession loss, and the loss of those memories we cherish from pictures, videos, along with the comforts we may have taken for granted most every day.

This reminds me of a number of years ago, when many of us experienced the loss of power in the Dayton area for nearly 10 days as a result of Hurricane Ike. What I remember as significant was that in the midst of this “inconvenience”, and having no means to cook, or watch TV, we actually went outside and met our neighbors.  For over a week, each night we gathered, cooking together on our grills, and getting to know one another, even though many of us had lived beside the other for  years. We spoke of how thankful we were that this storm that had devastated other areas of our nation, only minimally inconvenienced us. We also shared about our families, and our lives. Just as quickly as this event brought us all together, we just as quickly went back to our previous ways of life once the power came back on.

“In my walk I have come to see that there are times in life that we may become so consumed with life distractions, that we forget to separate ourselves from these distractions, and as a result fail to acknowledge both the celebration and the challenges others are going through.”

Honestly, I have been personally confronted by, and further saddened that there have been times in my own life where being thankful for what I have has come from the perspective of what others have lost.

In closing, I believe my point is that I will work to challenge myself to, and to encourage each of you as well, to make it our goal to truly appreciate today, where we are, what we have, and as well also appreciate that “in the blink of an eye” it can all change…….

Appreciate today,

Steve