“Here are two crucial end-of-life lessons: While their truth might be especially vivid as the end of life approaches, the ideas are well worth putting to work at any point you may be on in life’s journey. A fulfilling life needs the anchor of love, but that love must fuel purposeful living. Love a-n-d purposeful living: The one energy and drive feeds the other if we are to make the world a better place for others as well. The sooner a person realizes and harnesses the dual forces of love and purpose, the likelier they are to live a meaningful and constantly energized life.” – Gordy Zacks

. . . two people give and nurture and share,
Building and growing from mistakes in the past,
Planning together for things that will last.
– from a poem by Florence Zacks Melton, Gordy’s mother

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1. Do I weigh how I spend my time and my energy between love and purpose?

2. When I consider my sense of purpose today, am I bitter or unhappy about what I might not have attained or had the opportunity to do? Do I instead find energy and motivation in those things I can still achieve and contribute – no matter how small they may seem?

3. Do I remind myself how easy it is to give “love” lip service and squander valuable time on actions more related to how I will be remembered than in positively impacting the lives of people I will leave behind?

4. Am I starving others of the opportunities they want and deserve to give me love in the ways they know best and mean the most to them?

5. Trying to be brave and valiant, do I starve myself of the love and understanding I really need, dismissing that need as unimportant versus other priorities?

6. Do I respect that other people may be caught up in genuine feelings of sadness? Do I do my best to help them see beyond the sadness and to focus on realizing the opportunities of the future?