“One should count each day as a separate life.” This quote means that we should live each day as if it’s going to be our last. I try to do this by loving everyone and doing what is right, even if it is out of my comfort zone. I believe that life should be lived to its full potential each day.


What is the definition of living life to its fullest? The ‘book’ definition is, in active use of maximum degree. My definition is, loving, being thankful, being happy, and doing what is right the best possible. One person that set this example for me was Kim Ryan. Kim was a wife, a mother, and a friend to everyone. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2004 and fought it for over 2 ½ years, never giving up and always living the best way that she knew how. I never really knew anything about her personality until the day of the scarf. This is how it went… one Sunday morning, I saw Kim Ryan handing out bulletins for church, as usual. She was wearing her normal unique fashion of an exotic skirt and a nice blouse with a scarf. When I saw her scarf it caught my eye. It was a new scarf, one that I had never seen before, it was covered in beautiful colored hearts. We had never really talked before and I’m not even sure that she knew who I was, but I decided to tell her how much I adored it. To my surprise she took it off and gave it to me! My mind was filled with thoughts about how much better the world would be if everyone was more like her. I was thankful for that day because she taught me how to love unconditionally.

Speaking of being thankful, Sam Eden taught me how to live a better by being thankful for what I have. Sam was a 40 year old man who had been paralyzed from shoulders down since he was 12 years old. My friend, Presley, and I used to take care of him on Wednesday evenings. One thing that amazed me about Sam was how he was so thankful for everything that he had, despite all of the obstacles that he faced everyday. I started learning to be thankful when I got a phone call from Presley. She frantically told me that Sam had been taken to the emergency room and had died a few minutes later. I felt my heart skip a beat as I tried to tell myself that it couldn’t be true. After I accepted this awful reality, I realized that I should just be thankful for having him as a friend instead of grieving about losing him. From my experience, I learned that in order to live each day the best that I can, I have to be thankful for what God’s given me.

Unfortunately, my grandpa never really lived his life to its fullest. He was a tough man, but he was always unhappy and never enjoyed all of the wonderful things that God gave him. When he was diagnosed with cancer, it seemed like he didn’t care if he lived or died. The way that he had no desire to live disappointed me and made me live differently. Once he died I was torn inside, but I knew in my heart that he was in a better place. Samuel Johnson once said, “Some desire is necessary to keep life in motion.” This means that we all have to change from having no cravings for life into having a passionate desire to make each moment count.

Living each day like there is no tomorrow has helped me develop a greater desire to love, be thankful, and enjoy life. When I look back on my past experiences, I see all of the wasted time that I spent being bitter, but now I know that living this new life style enables me to treasure each moment of life. “Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them,
is the true measure of our thanks.”