Susan Sparks: It's Still Life -- An Excerpt from Her New Book

Sooooo . . . during this week of sheltering in place . . . I'm thinking I could use a little Christmas.

You, too?

Good! That’s why I am publishing my newest book, MIRACLE ON 31st STREET, on May 3rd!  It’s a collection of twenty-six holiday meditations intended as evergreen inspiration. I was planning on publishing it later this year, but given our levels of stress, anxiety, and upheaval, I think we need it NOW!
A percentage of the first month’s proceeds will go to 
No Kid Hungry—helping kids get food during school closures and all the year-long.

As my gift to you, I'm offering a sneak preview of the book! For the next four weeks, I will be sharing sample chapters with each post. I hope you enjoy the second chapter during this month of holiday cheer!

Stay well my friends, xo Susan
 

It's Still Life

“I expect to pass through this world but once; any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now;let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” 
—Stephen Grellet, Quaker missionary

Whining has become an art form in our society. We complain about the winter weather: “Oh my gosh, it’s so cold. When will it ever stop?” Six months later, we grumble, “Oh my gosh, it’s so hot and humid. When will it ever stop?”

We moan that people are rude during the Christmas rush. We whine that trains and buses are late, that the stock market hasn’t done well, or that the grocery store is out of our favorite item. I once heard a woman at Whole Foods complaining to the manager that they were out of her soymilk substitute. First of all, what is soymilk substitute? And second, why would anyone want one, much less have a favorite?

We tend to believe that life comes with a warranty that promises things will always be easy, fun, and painless. When they aren’t, we complain incessantly. The truth is that there are no guarantees in life. I recently saw a sign online that said it best. “Life” was at the top, and the fine print beneath read: “Available for a limited time only, limit one per customer, subject to change without notice, provided ‘as is’ without any warranties, your mileage may vary.”

We waste so much time complaining about the superficial things that we lose precious seconds, hours, days, even years. As the Jewish prayer says, “Days pass and years vanish, and we walk sightless among miracles.” We must be grateful in the good times and the bad, for in the end, it’s still life.

The warning “life is short” is often greeted by shrugs and eye rolls. Yes, we’ve all heard this saying many times, and that’s part of the problem. We’ve heard it so much that we have become immune to the urgency in those three short words.

We don’t know what is going to happen from one day to the next. We don’t know if we will be given tomorrow or even the rest of today. Look at the headlines: random shootings, suicide bombers, hurricanes and forest fires, soaring cancer statistics.

Life is short.
It is also sacred.

The Psalmists offered this wisdom: “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb . . . I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:13-14). Life is the greatest, most sacred gift we have. Sure, you may think that the inclement weather or the bus being late or the store being out of your soymilk substitute is important, but if you didn’t wake up this morning, then what difference would it make?

Life is short. Life is sacred. And because of that, it should be celebrated in the good times and the bad. No matter where you find yourself—in the long line at the Macy’s return counter, in the dentist chair, or in the chemo room—it’s still life, and there is joy to be found in the simple act of taking of a breath and acknowledging the gift of the moment.

The author Elisabeth Kübler-Ross wrote, “People are like stained glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”

Find that light. Strive to be grateful in all circumstances. Use your gratitude to inspire and lift up others who are mired in difficulty. We are not guaranteed that life will be easy, fun, or painless. Yet even in the pain, we can be grateful for the profound gift of being alive.

If you find yourself struggling, use these few words as your mantra: “It’s still sacred. It’s still a gift. It’s still life.”

–Taken with permission from Susan's blog--sign up to receive her email newsletter!