Most of you have probably read Michael's last post....the post about our dear friend "Grandpa Harold." In that post Michael mentioned that we heard these lyrics as we left Harold's funeral last week: "This is your life, are you who you want to be?" Those lyrics have stuck with us like glue this week and seem to fit SO MANY scenarios in our life.
1.) This is your life, are you who you want to be?
Our friend Harold was a deeply respected, well-known in the community, loving, giving, caring, Godly man. He wore his heart on his sleeve, he was always smiling, he walked with a bounce in his step and had a passion for life. He gave of his time and money to help local organizations, charities, schools, and businesses. For years and years he visited the nursing home in town, taking books to and from the library for the residents there, visiting and reminiscing about the good ole' days. He worked diligently as a realtor (and straight from the heart) to find many, many couples their first home....and was known to make the down payment from his own checkbook for them to get started in life. For us, it was a $300 bill for our first property tax payment. And let me tell you....$300 was A LOT of money to us back then! That $300 might have been the difference between us buying our first home or having to go back to the drawing board and wait until we could save more money. When I think of Harold and the way he lived his entire life, I think about my own life and the lyrics, "This is your life, are you who you want to be?"
2.) This is your life, are you who you want to be?
I'm think I'm a pretty good mom and wife but I know that I'm nowhere near perfect and that I've got a lot to learn and a lot of room for improvement. I tend to get stuck on the little, mundane things - things like shoes left by the door and toys scattered around the room. These things seem so important to me in the moment but when my kids look back do I want them to remember me as the mom that yelled a lot but kept a spotless home or do I want them to remember me as a warm and loving mom that was fun and played with them? I try to be a good wife but I know that there are times when I could do more to show my husband how much I love him. I could tell him more. I could leave him a note. I could surprise him with a simple meal at the end of a long, hard day. I should be doing more to let him know how much I appreciate everything that he does for our family and at the end of a busy day at home with the kids, I sometimes forget to let him know how appreciated he really is. I can easily think about my role as a wife and mother and and the lyrics, "This is your life, are you who you want to be?"
3.) This is your life, are you who you want to be?
The final thing that comes to mind when I hear these lyrics is our journey this past year to lose weight and become healthy, not only for ourselves but to be good role models for our children. It has been an amazing journey, with ups and downs and lots of in-betweens but my favorite part of it all is that I did it with my best friend, and we have inspired others to do the same thing and take back their lives! We honestly feel like this is our "calling" in life...this is what we were meant to do! We feel blessed to be able to share our experiences with others and help to motivate them to make the same changes in their lives. Our involvement with AdvoCare has only strengthened that purpose within us. Not only do we get to share great products with others but we also get to help others find a "Plan B". I cannot begin to explain how rewarding that feeling is and how humbled we are to be a part of this amazing company. We share these products with others because we KNOW that they work. We KNOW that they are created and tested by a team of doctors and scientists. We KNOW that athletes like Drew Brees, the Superbowl MVP choose to use these products because they are the BEST! We also know that there are many people out there, just like us, that might need a "Plan B". They might need a way out. They might need to cut a new path in life and AdvoCare is a company that can do all of that. We are blessed to have been introduced to the products and we are blessed to have found our "Plan B." When I think about our finances and our lifestyle, I think of the lyrics, "This is your life, are you who you want to be?"
This IS my life and I am working very hard to be WHO I want to be. I have work to do in all areas of my life, but someday when I'm gone, I want my children to know that their mother was exactly WHO she wanted to be. That she didn't "close her eyes" and let this life pass her by, that she didn't live with "broken promises" and that her life was "everything she dreamed it would be."
I urge you, if there are areas in your life that you need to work on, don't wait. Don't let this life pass you by. Make the changes. Keep the promises. Open your eyes to what you have and to who you aspire to be.
-Lindsey
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