We see it in the news, we read about it in newspapers or in social media feeds, we hear of it from people we know or don’t know; but we never think it could happen to us. We sympathize with those who get affected. We recognize that it is now more common than ever before. We know it’s possible that anyone can get diagnosed with any disease at any time in their life. But we still don’t grasp the idea of the disease entering our own home. We pray and we hope that we never have to deal with it, until the disease decides to come knocking on the door; uninvited.

The reasons as to why the disease comes can be endless. You can look at it from different angles and you may never find the answer you need to give you peace. No answer can give you peace for having to deal with life and death. And even if you were to find justifications or causes that could make sense, you will still say: “But why me?”

When we get struck with a disease, all of a sudden, we see things differently. We realize we haven’t lived our life yet. We are convinced that we need more time to do the things we wished we could do. And in some cases, we are attached to the world and the people we love and we wonder: “if I’m gone, will my family be ok?” You start to feel a strong sense of responsibility towards your family and those you take care of whichever way you do. You start to think about your job (not sure why still), you think about that property you never sold, the bank account that’s in your name only. The thoughts are endless. You think of anything and everything. You start to stress over those you are leaving behind if your time is up in this life. You worry, you stress, you think, you agonize, you resent; you feel helpless.

In the end, all your feelings will result into the feeling of helplessness. For once in your life, you realize you have no control over what will happen to you. You can do surgeries, take medications, follow doctor’s orders; but you still don’t have any control over the outcome. Whether you live or die is not in your hands.

But it was never in our hands to begin with, so why do we only come to this conclusion when we are struck with a life altering circumstance. Why do we live our lives thinking we got all the time in the world to accomplish this and take care of that, when in reality we never did. No one knows their time. And no one knows how. It could be sudden. And it could be a process you become aware of till your last breath. Either case, why we don’t live our lives the best we can while we have it. So that if and when you are struck by something out of your control that will change the course of your life, as you know it, you have no regrets and a long to do list.

Having said that, it is very hard for people to live their lives always prepared for the worst case scenario. No one can live like that. And rightfully so. Life must be lived. So live it while you can. Worrying about the people you love won’t change anything. Everyone has their path to live no matter how difficult it may be. We have no control over the outcomes of our lives, all we can do, is live one day at a time; one moment at a time. The rest is out of our hands, never was, never will be. That is a fact.

Lesson to be learned here, live your life today. Don’t stress about tomorrow because you have no control over it. Don’t take people for granted or the breath you have for granted. Because people can be taken away from your life in a blink of an eye; so can your breath. Don’t wait till you get struck by a disease to wake you up and realize how important people are to you. And don’t allow yourself to get attached to the material things because you are not taking it with you. Focus your energy of giving love to everyone around you. Do the best you can while you can. And leave your last breath in God’s hands; as it has always been.