I had just completed some training for our 9 UC College Corps Interns. Jim was waiting for me at Lake Yosemite were we were going to test our old sail boat to see if it was lake worthy. Jim had packed dinner and we were going to relax and enjoy the lake.

But everything changed when Jim had a massive heart attack while at the lake. With the help of some wonderful people we got him in the car and I drove him to the Mercy ER where he got excellent care. From there a flight to Emmanuel where 3 stents were placed and 2 days in ICU. Jim has been home for almost a week, but our lives will be different from now on. We are thankful to God for sparing his life, we are thankful for amazing medical teams that took care of Jim, we are thankful for the prayers and all the support we received.

All of a sudden priorities shifted! And yet the world did not stop. All of a sudden I could not be with the LifeLine staff, and yet, they handled things well without me and did not need me at all. All of a sudden, the future we envision changed, and yet, it is a future we get to have together and so it does not matter.

Strange how a close call with death can change perspectives, change the way we see the world. Jim and I are in our 60s and many of our friends are starting to have health problems, and yet we thought we were immune to it.

In our conversations over the last week we talked about things on our ‘bucket list’ and how we will restructure our lives. We talked about the new ‘normal’ with Jim most likely going into early retirement. Jim has always worked, and since I have known him Jim’s work was meaningful and fulfilling and blessing others with his kind heart and open mind. This all will change and we are looking forward to seeing how God is going to use him in the next chapter of life, but it will be an adjustment.

Why am I sharing so much personal stuff? Because death is imminent but we seldom speak about the elephant in the room. Are you prepared for it in every aspect? Spiritually? Financially? Emotionally? Is your family in a place where they know how to move forward? Are your priorities right so that you won’t have regrets?

We were not planning on this and yet we are thankful for another opportunity at life, for another reminder that our lives are limited and the things that mattered yesterday, might not be that important today. Today, by the grace of God, we live and enjoy life together,