One of my favorite poems is “The Dash” by Linda Ellis. “The Dash” is a reflective poem about a trip to the cemetery and upon looking at the headstones noticing the two dates – birthdate and death date separated by a dash. That dash represents the person’s life.
An interesting point to note is that the dates take up more real estate on the headstone than does the dash – the representation of years of life, love, happiness, sorrow, challenges and triumphs. The dates are finite points in time. The “dash” represents a score of points on a timeline; a plethora of actions, reactions, milestones, hopes, dreams, and opportunities.
Take a moment and think about your dash so far. Think about the people who have been a part of putting points onto your dash. Who was your first boyfriend or girlfriend? When did you realize there was a difference between boys and girls? Remember the time you fell and skinned your knee? All of these things are moments in time and they shape our lives – they are points on our dash.
As you think about your life, you have achieved many, many things. You’ve started and completed projects. You’ve helped others. What points on your dash are you most proud of? What points do you want to add to your dash between now and your second date?
Do you have things you wanted to do when you were a child our at some point in your youth that you never accomplished? Do you have dreams deferred? Is your current set of points on your dash aligned with your hopes and dreams? If not, why not? Have you gotten caught up in “life” without really living? Until your second date arrives, do everything you can to live your best life. Decide, then do. Fill your dash with life!
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