Living Outside The Lines: “The Dash on Your Tombstone”

by, Becky J. Miller, aka ‘Warrior Princess’

Walk through a cemetery, take a look around, what do you see?  Tombstones.  What does a tombstone represent?  It reflects basic information about someone’s life; name, date of birth, date of death and sometimes a tag line like, “Cherished Mother.”  What tombstones don’t tell are the stories of our lives, those pages are hidden in the “dash”.

When the time comes, and whether we want to face it or not, the time does come for all of us, what will those left behind have to say about your “dash”?  Will their words cause you to cringe with regret, or will they tell the tales of selfless love?

Will your children weep because they were unable to compete with your career, or will they joyfully recall your presence at all of their football, volleyball, soccer, basketball games and track meets?

Will your friends recall how fashionably you dressed, replacing your garments with each new season, but never recall you sharing your bounty with others in need?

Will you be remembered for regularly escaping on luxurious vacations, but never having set foot in a place of devastation where your assistance was desperately needed?

Will people say, “she had little, but she gave much?”  Or will your greed and selfishness be the topic of conversation?

Will your neighbors recall how you mowed their lawn when they were ill, or will they share how you called the homeowners association to report when their weeds were too tall?

Will someone find the stockpile of Girl Scout cookies that you bought to be kind even though you never ate them, or were neighborhood children afraid of the “mean old lady/man?”

Will co-workers remember how you organized delivery of meals when their family members passed away, or will they say you offered no comfort in their time of need?

Will your childhood friends who knew you as a happy-go-lucky youngster, shake their heads in sadness at the adult you became?

Will your school teachers who wrote home about your vast potential, look at your empty life and wonder how it all went so wrong?

Will strangers remember your smile or your unkind words?

We control neither our birth, nor our death, but we absolutely control the content in our “DASH”.  Don’t like what yours is saying?  Then modify it!  As long as you have breath, you have time to change your “DASH”!

Until Next Time,

Becky J Miller

“Warrior Princess”

Previous Comments:

Autumn Cotten: The Dash is very very powerful!