Don't Blink

Unfortunately, I did or so it seems, and here we are in the first full week of June. Cool rainy days have turned into hot sultry nights (wish that was as sexy as it sounds). The first half of the year is almost done and I can only scratch my head in disbelief. My how time flies. And my how things change.

Kenny Chesney talks about this in his song "Don't Blink"? About how we are living our life and in a blink of an eye days, months or even years have gone by and things have changed. Sometimes it greets us in sad, heart wrenching ways, like the sudden loss of a loved one. Other times, it comes in the form of a phone call or an e-mail that makes our dreams come true. Either way, things change and life evolves at a pace that leaves us feeling like we are standing still.

If you don't know Chesney's song, here are some of the lyrics.

Don't blink
Just like that you're six years old and you take a nap and you
Wake up and you're twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife.

Don't blink
You just might miss your babies growing like mine did
Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your "better half"
Of fifty years is there in bed
And you're praying God takes you instead
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think
So don't blink

I was glued to my tv when it looked like he looked at me and said
"Best start putting first things first."
Cause when your hourglass runs out of sand
You can't flip it over and start again
Take every breathe God gives you for what it's worth.

It goes hand in hand with 'stop and smell the roses', the message being not to let life just pass you by. Participate. Interact. Be alive. Take time to appreciate the loved ones in your life. The joys and even the sorrows must be felt and experienced to the full extent. Because in the blink of an eye it can all change - made better or taken away.

Growing up, I'd always heard that as you got older time would fly by and it has. Think of all the things that have happened since January 1, 2011 and how these events have changed peoples lives. And with the phenomenal events our world is and has faced just in the last five and half months, one has to wonder what it all means, what the big picture is pointing to. I, for one, plan to "take every breath God gives for what it's worth."

Here are just a few of the events that have changed people lives:
- An 8.9 magnitude earthquake hit Japan, triggering tsunamis and a nuclear threat that reached the shores of California.
- Seventy tornadoes tore across 7 states in the southeast and mid-west, leaving 500 dead. In the U.S. EF-5 tornadoes are rare, but this year there have been at least 4.
- On average there are 670 tornadoes this time of year, but this year there have been an unusually high number at 1,168.
- One of those tornadoes left a 75-mile path of destruction and lasted 2 hours.
- The predicted end of the world came and went. Imagine how different the lives of those who believed are now.
- Egypt overthrew their regime.

In the blink of an eye our lives can change. For me, one life changing moment came with the offer of a publishing contract almost six months ago. Since then, I feel like I've been running at full speed. And now I find myself wondering where in the heck the days have gone. I don't think I even slowed down long enough to truly celebrate my dream come true moment. I meant to, but then I blinked...

To continue with Chesney's lyrics:

So I've been tryin' ta slow it down

I've been tryin' ta take it in

In this here today, gone tomorrow world we're livin' in.

Have you had a 'don't blink' moment?

How would you finish this sentence: It seem like just yesterday...