Your Dash

I read of a man who stood to speak


At the funeral of a friend.


He referred to the dates on her tombstone


From the beginning to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth


And spoke of the following date with tears,


But he said what mattered most of all


Was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time


That she spent alive on earth


And now only those who loved her


Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,


The cars, the house, the cash,


What matters is how we live and love


And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard;


Are there things you’d like to change?


For you never know how much time is left


That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough


To consider what’s true and real


And always try to understand


The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger


And show appreciation more


And love the people in our lives


Like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect


And more often wear a smile,


Remembering that this special dash


Might only last a little while.

So when your eulogy is being read


With your life’s actions to rehash


Would you be proud of the things they say


About how you spent your dash?

By: Linda Ellis

It's been a long time since I have written anything here.  Life always seems to get in the way.  Then again that just seems to be an easy excuse... so maybe I will try to write more.  Some of you reading this may have read this poem before.  Some of you may not have.  It's really kind of a long story how I came to find it myself.  Long story short is I saw the last 4 lines as a tattoo on someone and was curious where they came from.  After some research I found this poem.  And well, I just love it!  Different things speak to different people and well this just spoke to me.  It made me instantly think about my dash thus far.  I thought about things that made me happy along with things I would change or do again if I could.  And I think as my dash continues it will be a constant reminder of things I would like to include or even continue in my dash.

I hope you like it as much as I do.  Maybe it will speak to you as it did to me.  Even if it doesn't I hope it makes you pause for just a second and maybe consider your dash.  Is there anything you would change?  Are you truly happy with your dash?  For like the poem says......

So when your eulogy is being read


With your life’s actions to rehash


Would you be proud of the things they say


About how you spent your dash?