The Reasons People Come & Go

People come into your life for a Reason, a Season, or a Lifetime.
When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do. - Anonymous

Have you ever met someone who made such an impact that when they exited your life, you felt a painful loss? Have you found yourself saying, 'Maybe it would have been better not to know them at all - it hurts too much to loose them now?'

I can think of several people that have come into my life and profoundly changed it for the better, and then disappeared as quickly as they came. Selfishly, I've found myself saddened and thinking about how much I wished they could stay longer. The disappearance didn't make sense. Why would something so wonderful have to come to an end? Why do some of the best things seem to only have a season? I don't know all the answers, but I do believe people come into your life with several different intentions.

One, is for a Reason. Perhaps you are at a point in your life that needs that person's experience, love, or energy to help you through it. I remember coming out of a tough relationship and not being sure what I felt about anything. Someone came into my life at that point and reminded me about who I was, what I wanted in my life, and who I wanted in my life. Since that point - they have disappeared from my day-to-day living, but what they did for me was unforgettable. I am forever grateful that they came into my life when they did. The only way I know how to repay them is to not loose sight of the gifts they brought to my life and perhaps - pay forward those gifts to someone else who is in need, as I was...

Others come into your life for a Season. Our lives all change course at points and times. I can think of my friends from high school, college, and now... some are the same - but some of us have gone in different directions and have drifted apart. That doesn't make the memories of what we shared together any less significant. I think back to the girls I lived with in college. All of us were full of hope for our lives, excited to 'meet the right guy', 'figure out what we wanted to do in life' and most importantly 'wanted to enjoy being young and free'. Now, many of those friends are now married, with kids, living in different states/countries, living very different lives. But the memories of that 'season' will forever linger in my heart.

And finally - a Lifetime. If we are lucky enough to meet a few people that spend a lifetime with us, we are truly blessed. These are the people that know us inside and out and still love us. At our best - at our worst, they would stand by us in our greatest celebrations and most difficult moments. A lifetime friend is a special person that we don't know why we are so blessed to have them, but we know we couldn't get through life without them by our side. I believe you know almost immediately when you meet a lifetime friend. There is a certain connection you make - perhaps with your soul, your energy, your heart - it is an undefinable, unexplainable friendship that can only be understood as a gift in your life.

For this week's challenge. I ask you to consider the following: We all have lost people in our lives that we wished had stayed 'a season longer'. Instead of focusing on 'why they left' - I challenge you to focus on, 'why they came' . I think you will find that you have been touched by people who were there for a reason and because of them - your life is better. When you are touched by those who were there for a season, you can look back at a point in life and smile at the memory. And, those lifetime friends. They help us stay focused on what our life journey is all about... the best is yet to come!

Reason, Season or Lifetime. All gifts. All purposeful. Your life is better because of each of them. Let go of the past and focus on the current season and enjoy every second of it. And make sure you tell your 'reason' friends just what they've done for you. I think I'll be making a phone call tomorrow.

My Message is My Life

My message is my life. - Mahatma Gandhi

This weekend I talked with a friend of mine who wanted to discuss how we know what our purpose in life is... it is always an interesting question to consider. I am not one to claim to have the answer, but I do have a few ideas.

So often, we spend time focusing on what huge impact we can have - some enormous purpose to existing. But I ask you to pause for a moment and then name the last 5 Nobel Peace Prize winners. Or perhaps, 5 Senators from your state or the current top 10 Best Selling Novelists.

Perhaps you can, but more likely, you cannot.

Now I ask you to name your 5 favorite teachers, your 5 greatest friends and your 5 strongest role models. The point to this little exercise is to prove that people don't remember those who won a fancy award or prize, they remember the people who were there for them, touched their hearts and influenced their life for the better.

So that is our purpose. To learn from our lessons to help others have a lighter road, to be open to new experiences, to find passion in the things we love and to love as if there was no such thing as being hurt.

When we start to feel off-track in life, that is just our heart taking the steering wheel and telling us to head in a different direction. It is important to pay attention to these times (and we all have them, so don't worry), because they can be the wind in our sails that drive us right to discovering 'our purpose'. When we are following our hearts, finding our simple joys, being there for others - then we have found our purpose. It's not a moment. It's not a major award. It is how we choose to live in each moment.

My message is my life.. Such a fabulous way to say - everything I do, every day of my life, is what I leave behind. So make sure you leave behind exactly what you want to. You have the ability to leave an imprint on this world anyway you want. What will your imprint be?

Will You Change the World?

I get up every morning, determined both to change the world and have to one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult. -E.B. White

What if we woke up every morning, with the intention of changing the world, and having the best day of our life? Simply answered, we would have a fabulous day - regardless of what the outcomes were.

You see, we all are able to change the world each day. It may be in something as simple as a smile to a stranger on the street. That smile contagiously crosses that stranger's face who then smiles at someone else. Soon, more and more people are lifted by the kindness and joy of a stranger, and the world is a bit happier. A simple smile. And you never know - maybe one of those strangers was on their last thread of hope - and that smile came at just the right time to push them through. You never know the impact your actions make on others - but TRUST that your actions change other's lives in powerful ways! Make the choice to make an impact.

When we wake up each day with the intention of contributing to our purpose on earth, we will ALWAYS change the world. But, the tragedy comes when we wake up and go through the motions of another day - forgetting the gratitude and purpose we have for our life. You are in the drivers seat - it's your journey, it's your purpose - will you decide to change the world today or just let it pass?

Live with intention. Live boldly! Live without excuse or apology. Be the change you wish to see (Ghandi). Stretch. Reach. Find your simple joy and then give it to someone else.

It's just a smile. Or so you thought. Go out now, and change the world.