Perspective. At too high a cost.

That problem with my laptop?  The sticky keys from where I dropped a mocha on it? Unimportant.  That my kids are getting older and I am stressed about what I am going to do? Not that big a deal, in the larger scheme of things.  Unemployment? Upsetting, but not the end of the world.

There are times in life when you get smacked up side the head, metaphorically.  Today was one of those times.

I have written before about the group I attend on Thursdays.  It is an important part of my life.  The people in it matter to me, even if I only see them once a week.  Today I learned that one of the members, a smart, funny man whom I was getting to like a lot for his humor and warmth, had killed himself.

I am not going to pontificate about suicide. No "how could he hurt his family like that?" No condescending "It's a permanent solution to a temporary problem."  No one knows what demons lurk inside someone else's brain.  No one knows how unscalable someone else's mountains look to them. I have known a lot of people who have been in that place of utter despair.  He is as of yet the only one to have successfully acted on it.

No. Life is too short. All I can say is....

Tell the people in your life how much you love them.

Hug your kids.

Hug your kids more.
Reach out to the friends you've lost track of.
Ask that really cool person from church/work/school/Facebook out to coffee.
Listen to the birds.
Watch the sunset every so often.
Go home early from the office now and again.
Explore off the beaten trail.
Overtip the waitress.
Find your passion.
Forgive other people.
Forgive yourself.
Smile.
Laugh.
Love.

And always follow the sign to the chinchilla races.