The Day Before

I don't remember much about September 10th, 2001. I know what the routine was, I remember we were starting a unit about ancient Egypt in class, and I vaguely remember my mom was late to pick us up to carpool home. And yet, the next day is burned into my memory as it is on millions of others. We don't know the day before tragedy hits or the day before we meet the love of our life. We can only live life one day at a time.

December 6th 1941 was just another winter day. October 28th 1929 was a crisp fall day. November 21, 1963 was full of Thanksgiving preparations. Today, December 7th, October 29th and November 22nd are big letter days in our history textbook marking the attack on Pearl Harbor, the stock market crash on Black Tuesday, and the assassination of John F. Kennedy. But the day before we didn't know our lives would change forever.

I am a firm believer in remembering and learning from the past, in loving and enjoying the present, and in planning and preparing for the future. They each have their place in the balance of our lives; too much emphasis on any one time frame and we run into all sorts of trouble. Holding onto the past, whether the grievances and mistakes, or the glory days of old, keeps us from progressing and becoming who we are meant to be. Living only for today (yolo) can lead to selfishness as we distance ourselves from the lessons we need to learn from the past and the preparations we need to prepare for the future. And if we find ourselves planning and preparing only for what is to come, we will miss the beautiful daily joys.

I don't have a magic formula for creating this harmonic blend of all three in my life. I don't have all the answers. But today I am reflecting on how grateful I am for the lessons I've learned since that tragic September morning 13 years ago. And as I have studied World War II and the Holocaust over the past 15 years, I have seen a remarkable similarity in tragic and trying times; at the very times we are seeing the worst of humanity (terrorism, genocide), we also see the most incredible displays of heroism, selflessness, and love.

I love the quote by Winston Churchill:“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”

We don't know the day before our lives change drastically, but when we treasure the small daily changes I believe we gain a much wider perspective on life. It doesn't need to be about the day before, today, or the day after. Life is about all of it together and how it influences each of us.