A leader of a weekly Bible class was known for his charitable work. One day during a Bible study, suddenly, an angel appeared. The Angel said, “All your work has been noticed in heaven. We are going to let you choose a wish. You can have power, money or wisdom.” Without a moments hesitation he chose wisdom.
The angel touched his head and disappeared. With great anticipation everyone in the Bible study waited for him to say something. After a moment someone said, “With your gift, say something wise.”
The man thought for a moment and said, “With the gift of great wisdom I now realize I should have taken the money!”
Wisdom.
The angel touched his head and disappeared. With great anticipation everyone in the Bible study waited for him to say something. After a moment someone said, “With your gift, say something wise.”
The man thought for a moment and said, “With the gift of great wisdom I now realize I should have taken the money!”
Wisdom.
It is something that you get as a result of something significant happening in your life, either to you or through you. I want to share something I have learned as a result of something happening to me. Of course, I’m talking about my challenge with ALS.
The last three years of my life have given me some points to think about. I thought I would share them with you in order to give you something to ponder.
Let me start off with what I miss:
I miss feeding myself
I miss showering . . . alone
I miss dressing myself
I miss crawling into my bed and burying my face into my pillow
I miss putting my arms around my children and giving them a nice hug
I miss taking a walk outside with my wife
I miss going to work (more on this later)
I miss dancing
I miss basically everything!
In a nutshell, I miss experiences.
The last three years of my life have given me some points to think about. I thought I would share them with you in order to give you something to ponder.
Let me start off with what I miss:
I miss feeding myself
I miss showering . . . alone
I miss dressing myself
I miss crawling into my bed and burying my face into my pillow
I miss putting my arms around my children and giving them a nice hug
I miss taking a walk outside with my wife
I miss going to work (more on this later)
I miss dancing
I miss basically everything!
In a nutshell, I miss experiences.
“Alright, Akhil, I get it. You miss a bunch of things that you used to be able to do. So what?” Here is the “So what.”
I have learned that all the joys in life are a collection of experiences that lift your mood and remind you of the good times. For example, let me share with you an experience at work.
It was my first week at my new job. I was busy trying to figure out which end was up. I had been studying our operation and protocol manuals. It was an intense time.
I remember it was Friday at 4:00 pm when my boss, the president of the company, walked into my office and said, “It’s time!” I said, “What?” To my surprise, he pulled out two beers and said it's time to quit working and spend some time with your team. He told me we have a tradition here every Friday at 4:00pm, we enjoy a beer with each other. It builds the team up and lets you unwind!
I remember this tradition fondly, it was quite an experience. In retrospect, I’m glad they didn’t have Cocaine Friday. It might have been great for productivity but the jail time would have been horrible!
I have learned that all the joys in life are a collection of experiences that lift your mood and remind you of the good times. For example, let me share with you an experience at work.
It was my first week at my new job. I was busy trying to figure out which end was up. I had been studying our operation and protocol manuals. It was an intense time.
I remember it was Friday at 4:00 pm when my boss, the president of the company, walked into my office and said, “It’s time!” I said, “What?” To my surprise, he pulled out two beers and said it's time to quit working and spend some time with your team. He told me we have a tradition here every Friday at 4:00pm, we enjoy a beer with each other. It builds the team up and lets you unwind!
I remember this tradition fondly, it was quite an experience. In retrospect, I’m glad they didn’t have Cocaine Friday. It might have been great for productivity but the jail time would have been horrible!
How can you use this information for your benefit? You can do something amazing with it, especially with the Christmas season upon us. Let me ask you a question. What did you get for Christmas last year? How about the year before? No idea? Yeah, me too.
What does that mean? Does that mean other people don’t remember what I got them either? What about all the time and money I spent on them? Doesn’t that matter? How can they not remember that perfect gift I got for them? I shopped and shopped, I fretted over the most ridiculous details, and you say they don’t remember it?!
I’m sorry to say they don’t. So what do I do, Akhil? That is why I am writing this post. This year make sure you give your loved ones an experience. An experience that is unforgettable. For example, if I could, I would give my wife a note saying “Get ready for a memorable evening.” (Not what you’re thinking!)
I would make up the dinner table with all the finest dinnerware we have, get dressed up in my tuxedo and serve the most memorable meal ever. How can I make it memorable? Simple, I do everything. My wife doesn’t do anything but enjoy the evening!
If I could, I would get dressed up like one of the Sesame Street characters and have a party for my daughters. I know they are much older now, but they would remember it because I am making the effort to make them laugh. This is something they would remember forever.
What does that mean? Does that mean other people don’t remember what I got them either? What about all the time and money I spent on them? Doesn’t that matter? How can they not remember that perfect gift I got for them? I shopped and shopped, I fretted over the most ridiculous details, and you say they don’t remember it?!
I’m sorry to say they don’t. So what do I do, Akhil? That is why I am writing this post. This year make sure you give your loved ones an experience. An experience that is unforgettable. For example, if I could, I would give my wife a note saying “Get ready for a memorable evening.” (Not what you’re thinking!)
I would make up the dinner table with all the finest dinnerware we have, get dressed up in my tuxedo and serve the most memorable meal ever. How can I make it memorable? Simple, I do everything. My wife doesn’t do anything but enjoy the evening!
If I could, I would get dressed up like one of the Sesame Street characters and have a party for my daughters. I know they are much older now, but they would remember it because I am making the effort to make them laugh. This is something they would remember forever.
Make memorable experiences for your family this Christmas. In the future your family can say, “I miss Dad, I miss how fun he made everything!”
I hope you leave me some comments on what ideas you came up with.
I hope you leave me some comments on what ideas you came up with.
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