Count your blessings….

Nothing is permanent. And that is a reality that has been driven home and driven harshly in recent times.

Its scary the way a moment changes your lives. Its scary how extremism can rip apart everything you’ve lived for. Its scary how your life is no longer in your hands…I thought about it and realized that I take so much for granted in my day-to-day life. The presence of a loved one, kind words, a smile, a hug, a phone call…my job, the monthly credit into my account, freedom…food, shelter…my space. I never stop to think what I would do if I didn’t have all this or any of these tomorrow? What if I had ‘my space’ and noone to share it with?

What if I extend my hand and find no one to hold it? What if someone reaches for me and doesn’t find me there? The thought is so scary that I can feel my insides turn to ice and I actually start shedding tears. And all this is just because of the thought.

Then what about those whose world was rent apart when the twin towers went down? When the tube ripped apart miles below ground level? When the daily trip home turned into a bloodbath on a crowded local train? When the innocent-looking cycle blew to pieces anything and anyone around it? And many many more such incidents. What did they do wrong? And worse still…what about those they left behind? Those unfulfilled dreams now left behind like a painting half-done or a story half-told? Plans nearing completion or just at inception…what happened to them? Were those left behind able to move on? Can the void ever be filled? What about the regret for all the things that should have been said / should have happened, but couldn’t any longer? Who will be the deliverer for all these innocent lives, marred for as long as they live?

I can still feel the numbness at these thoughts. And all I know is…count your blessings…count what you have today…count ‘who’ matters today. Share life, time and whatever you have with those you want to share it with. Prioritize today. We never know what tomorrow brings.

My thoughts go out to those affected by 9/11...and all other innocent lives ever affected by an action the cause of which was far removed from their daily lives…