Before I was married and was on the dating scene, the first date was almost always awkward. Getting the conversation rolling in a comfortable way took lots of effort. I usually liked being the one to ask questions so I could learn more about the person I was meeting. One of my standard questions was: “If you could spend one hour meeting face-to-face with someone either alive or dead, throughout all world history, whom would that person be?”
The answers I heard ranged in many different directions, from ancient historical figures to past Presidents to civil rights leaders to movie stars to sports celebrities. One of the categories of answers included deceased relatives, especially mothers, fathers and siblings. When this answer was provided a sort of wistful look appeared on the face of the person as opposed to a really happy, elated look that occurred when the “someone” was in the category of dead famous people.
My own answer to this question? This would be a tough choice between my deceased brother, father or mother. Although it would be great to have a one hour meeting with George Washington, Moses or Babe Ruth, I never got the chance to say a formal “goodbye…I love you” to my aforementioned deceased relatives because they died suddenly at their homes. I did not get the opportunity to see them in their death beds, whisper in their ears telling them I loved them and sort of have closure before they passed.
I believe that we are all guilty, at times, of not realizing just how important we are to our loved ones. Losing us would be a devastating event for the people in the world that love us with all of their hearts and souls. Yes, we owe it not just to ourselves, but also our loved ones to try to stay alive and in good health as long as possible. Staying steadfast and focused on your weight control efforts are major ways of achieving this goal.
Neil Diamond wrote a song about famous people being lost “too soon”. Although not many people reading (or writing ) this blog are famous, let’s all stay out of this song.
