7
Live Your Life the Way You Want to Be Remembered

WHEN I WAS first told that I had melanoma, my immediate reaction was denial—there must have been some mistake. After all, I wore sunscreen religiously, I was in reasonably good physical condition, and I definitely did not feel sick. But once the doctor repeated my diagnosis and underscored how I absolutely needed to come in for surgery the next morning at 8:00 a.m., I just stood there in shock.

Suddenly a flood of memories raced through my head as I contemplated the prospect of dying and whether or not I had lived my life thus far the way I wanted to be remembered. For instance, how many times had I promised my kids that I’d spend quality time with them only to get caught up doing something else? How many times had I forgotten to tell my wife that I love her and appreciate everything that she does? How many times had I vowed to keep in more frequent contact with my closest friends only to let life get in the way again? And how many times had I gotten so caught up in work that it began to rule my life? These regrets and others haunted me as I continued to ponder my fate.

The next morning I went in for surgery and prayed. As I was being taken into the operating room I promised myself that should the procedure be successful, I would commit to doing a better job of living my life the way I wanted to be remembered. Furthermore, I was resolute that I wouldn’t allow myself to have any more of the regrets I’d experienced in the past. Fortunately when the lab reports came back a week later, it was good news: the cancer had not spread. I was so grateful to have this new lease on life and the opportunity to start working on my personal improvement plan.

Within just a couple of weeks I began to see progress. I was doing a better job of keeping my promises to my kids and spending more quality time with them. I was also showing greater appreciation to my wife and even started having a weekly “date night” with her. In addition, I made it a priority to pick up the phone more to call my friends and tried to create a better balance between my work life and home life. While all of this is still a work in progress today, it feels good not to have those same feelings of regret that I had before.

Life can change in an instant—we all need to realize that. Cherish each day and work at being the best version of you. Take note of the gaps between the person you are today and the person that you hope to be. What changes will you make? What will you do more of or less of? What will you start doing and stop doing? Don’t wait for tomorrow to live your life the way you want to be remembered today.

Don’t wait for
tomorrow to live your
life that way you want
to be remembered today.

∼ How do you want your life to be remembered?

∼ What will you start doing today to live more in line with that image?