Most of us are not aware of the last time we will see someone.

Unless that person is literally dying as we talk to them, it’s unlikely we will.

Our last visit with an individual will usually only be known in retrospect, when we realize that “the last time I saw her was” and here, fill in the blank with days or months or years.

Not to mention that the larger the group, the less likely that all of the members of that group will ever be together again. I am thinking of something like a college graduation. My undergrad was a comparatively small event, maybe 250 graduates, but that group has never and will never be together again.

Our last time with a place or an event or a holiday is often the same. Hanging like a sword of Damocles is the possibility that this (whatever this is) is the last time.

This sounds glum, but I don’t intend it that way. What I do try to remember is that life is truly short. Rather than saddening us, that remembrance should spur us on to live authentic, genuine lives, to embrace what we want those lives to be, and to cherish the love, families, and friendships we are given

2020’s Christmas is complicated. Some are scared, and some who are not scared have lost patience. But make it an aim in your life to not lose those you love, and even more, not to lose those you are temporarily not so fond of.

On the outs with someone? Call. Even better, see them. Buy them lunch. Ask questions. You probably have more in common than you think you did, and renewing the ties of the past will remind you of what you had in common.

Life is short. Love is important. And love while you can. There are no guarantees.