What life lesson did you learn too late?

I just found out that one of my aunts passed away recently and although we never had the best relationship when she was alive, I still felt sad.

Why? You may wonder. Because it just reminded me of how fickle life is. One minute, the person is here, arguing over stuff, laughing, making plans and so on. Then suddenly, they’re gone. No conversation, no chance to say all the things we thought we’d say someday. 

Just silence.

This got me thinking about how much time we spend bothering over stuff that don’t even matter in the grand scheme of things. We spend so much time allowing our differences to define the entirety of our relationships with them and I’m not saying we should overlook disrespect or tolerate bad behavior but there’s a difference between protecting your peace and allowing bitterness to envelope you. 

I also think we underestimate how much time we take for granted. We postpone calls, visits, apologies because we assume there’ll always be time for that. 

But what if there isn’t? 

Life is very unpredictable. Love people while you can, forgive them as much as possible and set boundaries without resentment because sometimes all it takes is the news of someone’s passing to remind us of that. 

Think about it.