Life is a Gift

     Jon Gordon says, "Life is a gift, not an obligation." In many cases that gift is taken away too soon. This was so  evident in the case of the Boston Marathon on Mon., April 15, 2013. To my knowledge it's not known who woke up that day and decided to place 2 bombs close to the finish line. Last night was my last time to give an inspirational speech to our National Charity League. I was to continue to draw inspiration from the Positive Dog by Jon Gordon. Last night my idea beforehand was to look at this tragedy in light of a "positive dog".  Earlier in the day I shared this idea w/ my dental hygienist. At first,  she thought I was nuts! Then I explained to her that when looking @ the footage I noticed how may complete strangers ran to the aide of others! In this world God gives us "free will". That day began with "someone" or group deciding to "feed their negative dog" @ the cost of maiming and taking lives of other innocent people. Jon tells us daily we can look at ourselves as the main character in our own movie. What movie are you living, he asks? A horror, comedy, drama, or possibly documentary film? Monday we had someone/group who chose to star in a REAL horror film.They took this liberty with the intention of hurting, killing and changing other people's lives forever! Incredibly sad. However, we also had many, many people who, though they--not by choice-- ended up in this horror film, ran to render aide to those struck by the bombs. There definitely was a majority who made the quick decision to do all they could to reach out and help those in need. There was GREAT fear present during this turn of events. A fear which could have completely paralyzed everyone. Instead, many people moved forward in "faith"! They didn't "have to" render aide, they genuinely wanted to and "got to". People chose to make a positive difference in the lives of others. 
   My heart aches for the ALL the families who lost loved ones in this horrific tragedy. Some were at the race to cheer on a friend or loved one. They were at the end of the race giving of their time to uplift, inspire, encourage, cheer and have a positive impact on the lives of others running the race! While doing so, their own lives were either ripped away or bodies changed forever! Fair? NO! Life will not be easy for the survivors. It will take time to get back on track. It's definitely our turn to do our absolute best to stand by, listen to and encourage and support them to move forward with their healing. Help them move on in faith, not fear.