Today a co-worker of mine lost his battle with ALS. He was a kind gentleman and a good friend to many of us. Because he worked remotely, I only saw him every few months. The last few times I saw him, I was sadden to see that physically he had gotten worse. The passing came as a shock to everyone as he was still working and exchanging emails with many of us hours before his passing. He worked despite the condition and never let the disease become an obstacle. In many ways, working kept the lights in him burning. He was truly inspirational without trying to be.
The news hit some of my co-workers quite hard, especially ones have been working with him closely on a daily basis. Given the nature of ALS, we all knew it was a matter of when but we didn’t expect to be so soon. It was a complete shock to learn about his passing today.
Driving back from work today I thought about his passing and reflected on life…
When I got home and gave Mrs. T a kiss, I took the time to enjoy the kiss and let it sink it. When I gave Baby T1.0 a hug shortly after, I also took the time to enjoy it. When I was playing with Baby T2.0 after dinner, I also took the time to enjoy it.
We all exchange our time for money. We then use money to purchase things that we need and want in life. Yet when we need time the most, we find that we cannot buy time with our money. Oh the irony of life. 🙂
Time is precious and life is too short. While many of us are fighting for our financial independence, we all need to remember to enjoy the present. We can’t be constantly looking to the future and thinking that we only can be happy once we reach financial independence. Be present and be thankful for what we have right at this moment.
Stop all the guilts and all the worries. Guilts are a result of the past and we can’t change what’s already happened in the past; worries are a result of the future and we can’t control the future. What we can do is live our life to the fullest right at this very moment and enjoy what’s around us. At the same time, do plan for a better and brighter future.
Ask yourself – do the choices you make in your life make you a happier person? If it takes you a long time to answer this question or your answer is no, it’s time to rethink about the choices you make.
Start focusing on the positive things Think positively, learn how to be at peace with yourself, and start being happy with yourself right now instead waiting until tomorrow to get started.
Because tomorrow might be too late.
Hey Tawcan, sorry to hear about your co-worker. Will you be doing anything at work / out of work to celebrate his life?
Life is fleeting, yet everything we will experience is in this life. We must try to make the best of it; to live how we want to, and be a good person with our families and to the world.
Tristan
Hi Tristan,
I believe there’s going to be a service but it’ll be out of town.
Agree that we must try to make the best of our lives.
Sorry to hear about the loss of your coworker. I guess its a reminder for everyone that life is short, and that we should make the most of every day we have
Hi Our Big Fat Wallet,
Indeed it was a great reminder.
Oh! That’s what life should be, savoring every moment and showing the love to others especially family members.
Good conclusion Jayson.
One life to live Tawcan. Let’s make the most of it. That’s why at the end of the day, do as you please.
Take care.
Totally Dividend Hustler.
Hi Tawcan – sorry to hear about the loss of your coworker. Those events are difficult and they are also the times that force us to revisit our priorities, and sometimes change them, but mostly tell us to appreciate the present and what we have. After several family members passed away in the last few years, it also made me realize how important it is to have a will when you have kids, because you never know when it will be needed.
Hi TheMoneyMine,
Great that you’ve come that that realization.
Yes, my loved ones are passing away one by one. What good is a raise or FI, when the most precious things in life are gone. Definitely, enjoy the present. I’m hoping I can spend more time with my parents and take care of them before its too late.
It certainly make me be more appreciative of spending time with my parents. 🙂
Very sorry to hear about your coworker. I saw a family friend deteriorate rapidly and die from ALS, leaving five young kids behind. It was not only a reminder of the importance of living for today, but also the importance of getting one’s finances and insurance in order for the protection of your family.
Exactly Matt! Can’t agree with you more.
I’m sorry you lost your friend and colleague. 🙁 Even when we know those things are coming, it can still be a big loss. As for focusing on what’s important and taking the time to enjoy those little moments that make up most of life’s joy, that’s completely where our heads have been lately, too. It even inspired me to change our blog header — haha. But really, if we aren’t focusing on making the choices that will drive happiness, then what good is tracking all the money?
Hi our next life,
Boy you’re so right. What good is tracking all the money if we’re not already happy?
I’m sorry for your loss. ALS is a horrible disease. I too have a close friend suffering from ALS. Sadly, I don’t think he has much more time in this world. He’s made the most of it though. He’s created multiple foundations and built ALS treatment homes called Gleason House. He also just released a documentary on his progress. It just received great reviews at Sundance. Here’s his story – https://www.teamgleason.org/
Wow that’s a crazy story. Just watched the trailer for the documentary.
My condolences, Tawcan. What an awful tragedy.
Life moves at such a rapid pace. It is sad that death is one of the few experiences that have the power to shake us out of the rat race and focus upon what is truly important.
Hi FinanceSuperhero,
We don’t think about death much until it strikes someone in our circle. This reminder gives me a reminder to value presence and work hard to achieve FI one day.
Sad to hear man. How old was he when he died and was diagnosed?
I think about life A LOT more now at 39 than at 25. The end is nearing for sure.
As a result, I have spent more freely recently, and will continue to push on to see new countries every year. I’m spending the next 10 days with my parents now, and they are precious.
Best,
Sam
Hi Sam,
He was in his early 50’s. Took a while for the doctors to figure out that he had ALS. Great idea to spend more freely and enjoy life more.
Its definitely important to focus on the important things in life. There is a dinstinction between time=money and time!=money.
Hi D4s,
We all need to figure out what’s important to us in our lives and focus on these thins. 🙂
Sorry to hear about your co-worker. These are such hard reminders, but important to keep us focused on the things that matter most.
Hi Brian,
Hard reminder for sure. Definitely need to focus on things that matter the most.
Sorry to hear that Tawcan. Thanks for the post and reminder to keep life in perspective.
Hi The Green Swan,
It definitely got me think about my life and put it in perspective.
Well said Tawcan. I sorry to hear about your friend.
Although I’ve led a pretty good life, I’m hopefully tomorrow won’t be the end for me. I still have two kids to raise!
Thanks Mr. Tako. I hope tomorrow won’t be the end for me. But realistically we don’t know that for sure, so be appreciative of what you have right now.