Let’s Talk B.O.S.S.!
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Writer and founder of my8dayweek

Someone has said that it’s possible to live for 40 days without food, three days without water and eight minutes without air – but only one second without hope.

It’s profound. But eternity presents us a place to dream and hope for better days ahead. That keeps us going when we are in an ugly-get-me-outta-here season.

We are designed to make the best out of what we have, play even a bad hand well. Such is life, right!

We all didn’t start out the same, but I would like to believe we have a purpose and a bright future, with better days ahead.

Same goes, for everyone. It’s a promise that keeps us going when things are ugly, unbearable and painful. Depressing, crazy and full of tragedy. Sounds like real life drama series (?) – when the going gets tough.

We aren’t just machines who produce and consume food and goods.

We are made for something more, something more special and like a true B.O.S.S. — we are all Beautiful, Original and Somebody Special.

We have to own up to that. And make lemons out of lemonades. Our test into a…testimony.

Eternity equates to hope.

It places forever in our hearts and souls and gives life a meaning beyond striving for our own selfish desires, wants and needs. It opens the chapter to service and servanthood. Something bigger than ourselves.

Before ticking off our Bucket List, eternity reminds us, unveiling layer by layer, there is a Creator who placed purpose and a plan for every day and every week in us.

One symbol of forever is ∞. Initially called the Lemniscate, meaning ‘ribbon’, by the ancient Greek, the infinity sign carries the shape of a sideways figure eight, whose shape could be imagined as a twisted ribbon that has no beginning or end. It is meaningful because if you start tracing from any point on the infinity symbol ‘ribbon’, you will never reach an ‘end’ but will continue on the infinity loop forever.

Symbolism is powerful, and pretty much the infinity symbol is 8 on its side. Here at my8dayweek, we believe that we all have a bright future when we know our true purpose, everyone is designed to live a purpose-driven-life. We strive to do our best, combining all our talents and heart-centred projects to live a life that is truly fun, colourful and adventurous.

To do anything less, is a short fall.

Let’s talk about…death.

OK, hear me out. We don’t usually talk about it until somebody we know passes away.

But truly, people grow a lot when they are faced with the notion of death.

Here are five different things people say on their deathbed. I gathered my notes from a website for palliative care, notes taken by an observant nurse.

https://www.oldcolonyhospice.org/blog/bid/101702/nurse-reveals-the-top-five-regrets-people-make-on-their-deathbed

1.  I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me. This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made.

2.  I wish I didn’t work so hard. This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship.

3.  I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings. Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming.

4.  I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends. Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved.

5.  I wish that I had let myself be happier. This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to themselves, that they were content. When deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again. When you are dying, what others think of you is a long way from your mind. How wonderful to be able to let go and smile again, long before you are dying!

Life is a choice. It is YOUR life.

Choose consciously, choose wisely, choose honestly.

Choose joy and happiness. And remember to keep eternity in your heart.

It will allow your heart to beat on, when sadness fills your cup.

Live fully. Live without regrets. Forgive, and move on.

Live with passion and purpose.