My first job out of college was as a manager running programs for a fitness facility. Typically on Thursday nights, the gym runs a basketball league and when I was working there, I used to work a late shift on Thursday and go out for drinks with the guys who run the league afterwards. Since I left, we have been fortunate enough to keep our Thursday night outings going and last Thursday was no exception. As I walked through the doors of facility, down the small flight of stairs and over to the front desk, I gave my typical greeting to the employee working at check in. “Hi, Chuck! How are you?” Chuck, an older man only in his 50’s but appeared much beyond that point, always politely replied back that he is good and asks how I am. I in turn reply that I am good too and move on heading through the building and making my way to the basketball courts to meet my friends. Tonight is Thursday and I will once again head to the gym to participate in my typical routine but this time when I walk through the door and down the stairs there will be a teenage kid sitting behind the front desk, not the older gentleman that I have grown used to seeing upon entering the facility. You know how I know this? Well because last Friday, less than 24 hours after we exchanged our greetings, Chuck passed away. He was only 57 years old.
I first met Chuck back when I was managing the club and my initial impression of him, as well as several other people’s, had been less than flattering. His gray shaggy hair and unkempt appearance made him look no different than a homeless person you might find on the streets of any city. When he smiled, you could see the missing teeth in his mouth and when you walked by him you would be greeted with the smell of stale beer which no doubt came from one of the many beer cans you could see scattered about his car through the windows. Based on appearance and the fact that he was a grown man working a job typically held by college and high school kids for no more than minimum wage, everyone got the impression that he had some sort of issues.
It took people a long time to give Chuck a real chance but over the years he proved to everyone, including me, that we had misjudged him. He worked harder than most people in that building, took shifts whenever he was needed, and even worked in other departments. Over the years, this person who most of us thought would be fired or leave in a few weeks, ended up becoming a trustworthy, reliable staple at the facility. A few years ago they even gave him the opportunity to take on manager on duty position. Granted it was only one night but it was Friday night and no one ever wanted to be stuck working at the club on a Friday night until 11pm but Chuck did it and took it more seriously than any other manager took their managing shifts. To be honest, it’s hard for me to think of that place without him.
I chose to write this story because it’s always important to stress just how fleeting life can be. They always use the expression her clock is ticking to refer to a woman’s baby birthing years but the truth is we all have ticking clocks. Some of us are going to get more time on this earth than others. For some of us, our clocks are going to stop ticking all too soon. The problem is that there is no way of figuring out exactly how much time we are going to get. Last Thursday Chuck was doing his job and by Friday he was gone. Here today, gone tomorrow.
Life is short even if you live to be 100 so if your time runs out prior that, life becomes even more abbreviated. If it’s all over tomorrow, are you happy with how you are living? Do you have someone in your life that you aren’t speaking to or someone that you have hatred towards? Would you be happy leaving this world with those issues still unresolved? Are there things that you want that you keep putting off for someday? What if you don’t get someday? Is there someone you love that doesn’t know it yet? Would you be ok with them never knowing just how you feel? It’s nice to think that we always have to wait for the right time or right place for something to happen but why wait? If you died tomorrow, would you say that you are truly happy with how you lived?
“You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die. Or when. You can only decide how you’re going to live. Now.” - Joan Baez
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