love life. look for that rainbow, and frame it

I came across an open letter written by Charlotte of Huffington Post blog, via a friend’s Facebook post. link

Through her letter, I got to know that Charley loves life. She loves her family, has a loving husband and has 2 really young children. Unfortunately, by the time anyone gets to read the letter online, Charley has already passed on. She was diagnosed with Stage 4 bowel cancer in 2012.

Instead of feeling depressed, she lived her remaining days to the fullest.

In her open letter, Charley said,

I have so much life I still want to live, but know I won’t have that. I want to be there for my friends as they move with their lives, see my children grow up and become old and grumpy with Rich. All these things are to be denied of me.

But, they are not to be denied of you. So, in my absence, please, please, enjoy life. Take it by both hands, grab it, shake it and believe in every second of it. Adore your children. You have literally no idea how blessed you are to shout at them in the morning to hurry up and clean their teeth. 

Embrace your loved one and if they cannot embrace you back, find someone who will. Everyone deserves to love and be loved in return. Don’t settle for less. Find a job you enjoy, but don’t become a slave to it. You will not have ‘I wish I’d worked more’ on your headstone. Dance, laugh and eat with your friends. True, honest, strong friendships are an utter blessing and a choice we get to make, rather than have to share a loyalty with because there happens to be link through blood. Choose wisely then treasure them with all the love you can muster. Surround yourself with beautiful things. Life has a lot of grey and sadness – look for that rainbow and frame it. There is beauty in everything, sometimes you just have to look a little harder to see it.