Would you want to know?

Today, I learned of the passing of Kara Tippetts.  If you don't know who she is, do yourself a favor by finding her blog at www.mundanefaithfulness.com.  She was a 38-yr-old wife, mother, and overall lovely woman.  Her fight against breast cancer is chronicled in her blog and her book.  

I read her book a couple of months ago, and it changed the way I look at my life.  She has known for some time that she would die from this cancer.  She has lived each moment as if it might be her last.  It left me wondering if I would want to know when my death is imminent.  There's a blissful ignorance in not knowing when one's life will end.  Of course, few know exactly when it will end, but many know months in advance that it's coming.  

My first inclination is to say, "No.  I don't want to know."  I don't know if I could cope with the grief that one must feel when they know they're on a limited countdown (which we all are, by the way.)  Would the knowing darken whatever days I have left?  Would I withdraw from those I love in an attempt to lessen their pain?  I know me pretty well, and I fear that I might do just that.

Then, I think of Kara.  I consider the pure joy she found in the most mundane of activities.  Make breakfast with your kids.  It might be the last time you're physically able.  Drive to the store.  You may not get to drive again.  Take the stairs.  You may not have the energy next time.  There's an appreciation for every big and small thing you experience.  

So, I wonder...do we ever REALLY live unless we're faced with death?  It reminds me of a framed quote on my bedroom wall.  "How we spend our days is how we spend our lives."  There's an amazing beauty to be found in the way that Kara lived and died.  She lived each day with intention.  It makes me want to embrace my healthy life and live it more abundantly.  For that lesson, I thank you, Kara Tippetts.  http://www.mundanefaithfulness.com/home/2015/3/22/homecoming