He held the
letter from his wife in his hands, and thought about the enormity of the
moment. It was the last time his wife would ever say something completely new
to him, and he wanted to savor it. He could of course read it again, but for
now he didn’t know, and it broke his heart to think about the idea. He felt an
enormous pang of regret for every silly fight, every stupid criticism, and for
not appreciating her every second of every day. What he held in his hands was
proof again that we are never promised another second with people.
‘Dear Stephanie,
I had no idea how
hard this exercise would be. Write to your “future” self. I hope you haven’t
focused that much on your future all these years actually. I hope you’ve
realized what an incredible gift it was to have found your husband and daughter
after so many years stumbling in the dark, and never go too far outside the
present moment. It’s all we have. Things change, people come in and out of our
lives, and one day we wake up in a completely different place. I’m confident
you didn’t let that happen though. I’m sure you hugged your daughter tight
every day of her life, through the awkward teen years, and the first
boyfriends, and all the inevitable pains that come from growing up.
And your beloved husband. I hope you kissed him every day and looked in the mirror and laughed about how you two were growing old together. I hope you never stopped dancing together, and making love, and writing love letters, and showing each other in every way how lucky you were to have found each other.
I hope you remained true to yourself as well. That you grew as an artist and explored your passions, and continued your life as a teacher and a creator. Finding love made you so much better at these things. It gave you a sense of safety and security and peace, and I hope these things were reflected in your work.
If you have forgotten ANY of these things, stop what you’re doing and go hug your daughter and kiss your husband right this second. Everything else can wait. You found the loves of your lifetime when they came into your life, and if you’re taking them for granted then you forgot. Don’t forget. Love every moment of your ride together through this life.
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