Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Remembered but not Forgotten: The Last Moments

You might think this is going to be patriotic.  It's not.  I suppose it could be with 9/11 approaching but honestly I wasn't thinking about that when I chose the picture.  My focus was the headstone.  It seems that over the last few months (i.e. posts) my thoughts have been on different stages of life.  There have been a lot of drastic changes in our family circle over the last two years.  Friends and family have passed on, new family members have arrived..or will be soon...very soon.  But as those that have passed on have left us I've started thinking about legacy.  The Last Moments. 
When Mom told me about her last real moment with her mom I could see that everything that had happened in her life up to that moment faded into nothing.  It was still there but it meant nothing because that last real moment was so special.  It was a privilege for me to hear about it.

Of course there are other last moments.  The phrase "you'll never get a second chance to make a first impression" applies in more ways than just one.   It's a philosophy of mine that if I leave a job I leave on good terms and I absolutely never walk off the job.  If I am scheduled to work, even if I'm leaving the company and it's my last day, I work.  I don't want to be remembered as the guy who screwed the rest of the crew over just because he didn't like his job.

On that note, (no I'm not quitting my job) I recently (August 31st) hit the twenty year mark at Walmart/Sams.  Twenty years!  Nineteen ninety-four was twenty years ago.  I'd say it seems like only yesterday but it really doesn't.  I've lived in four states, moved countless times because I stayed at the same job.  I even got a plaque.  Yes.  I suppose it's a big deal.  Staying at one job for such a long time.  At first I didn't think so.  I've not really accomplished anything except dodging some bullets over the years. (We won't get into that).  However, what I realized was it's more then just what happened at work.  It's the people I've met over the years.  I've done some crazy things.  But I've also met some (crazy) people both inside and outside of work.  Friendships I still have today.  That's what makes the twenty years worth it.  God gave me a pretty awesome twenty years.  I hope the "last moments" (even though we still talk) I've had over the years have been good and that I'll be remembered as a follower of Christ or as someone who strove to be that.

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