Memorial Day has arrived with all of its reverence and solemnity – the first three-day holiday in 2013. What’s it all about? Patriotism and parades? Or beaches or backyard bar-b-ques? This morning I strolled through several neighborhoods and saw many flags, rustling ever so gently, in the light breeze. Yards of bunting festooned some of the older, large homes. I was humming the Pure Michigan ad theme song; I enjoy all their radio ads and it was the last music I heard while I still had my radio headphones clapped to my ears before I left for my walk. The background music in the Pure Michigan ads is “The Cider House Rules” movie theme. There is a video on YouTube featuring woodland scenes interspersed with birds and animals and the sweet strains of the “Cider House Rules” song – the scenery is so breathtaking, the music is very mellow. I try to watch that video at least once a day; it truly keep me grounded. Here is the video – it will take you to this special place in a heartbeat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csnUV3Gz4Pk

One of the Pure Michigan ads is called “Simple Sunrise” and I went on the Pure Michigan website to hear the ad again and I jotted down the words … the concept from “Simple Sunrise” is pretty simple and straightforward:

25,000 mornings, give or take, is all we humans get.
We spend them on treadmills,
we spend them in traffic,
and, if we get lucky, really lucky, it dawns on us to go spend them in a world where a simple sunrise can still be magic.
25,000 mornings.
Make sure some of them are pure Michigan

25,000 mornings – is that all? Sobering thought isn’t it? How many days have YOU used up already? How many days were unforgettable? How many days have you simply frittered away? There is a website where you can tell how old you are down to the very second. Have a look here – see how old you are in seconds, minutes, hours – even days: http://www.mathcats.com/explore/age/calculator.html

So, how old are you really? Well, I am 57 years of age, (although a day after working in the yard for four hours, I feel more like 67). The chart says I am 20,862 days old today. Wow! Following the logic of “Simple Sunrise” I only have some 4,000 odd days left to fill my life expectations, to meet my life goals or to complete my bucket list? Gee, and I was feeling old since my 40-year high school class reunion is this year!

Life speeds by. Make your moments count – be they second, minutes, hours or days.

And today for Memorial Day, remember our soldiers who died for their country. So many of those brave men and women died much too young – lives snuffed out leaving thousands and thousands of days unfulfilled.