What a beautiful statement I heard just yesterday!

I still grieve the death of the loved ones who have gone before me.

I particularly grieve those who died at a young age before life really got interesting.

I loved them all for who and what they were and the values they lived by.

Life is a struggle!

And I admire most those deceased loved ones who struggled valiantly.

The BEST WAY we can honor those who have gone before us is not simply to remember them with fondness.

No, we must try to embrace their behavior and live honorably as they did.

Imitation is still the sincerest form of flattery.

If not today, when?

Sorry that I’ve been absent from my daily blog.

I had a temporary memory loss while speaking with one of our sons on the phone.

I couldn’t remember the names of his wonderful wife and children.

It took me about 15-20 minutes for my memory to return.

My wife drove to Henry Ford Hospital here in the Detroit area.

After many tests, including an MRI, doctors concluded the cause was dehydration.

We had driven on this past Monday from Birmingham, Alabama to Detroit.

I deliberately didn’t have much to drink on the trip because I didn’t want to make stops along the way.

That’s a mistake I don’t want to make again.

Dehydration can produce the same symptoms as a stroke.

If you ever need hospital care, after 50 years as a patient there, I highly recommend it.

While lying in that hospital bed, I thought about all the people in the world who live their entire lives without access to good hospitals.

Ironically, my wonderful nurse was from Ethiopia and the neurologist was also an immigrant. I am so thankful to all those who dedicate themselves to healthcare.

I’ve written over 600 blogs.

Every morning, I sit with my laptop looking for inspiration.

If you are a regular reader, you’ll know by now that my daily message is always short and to the point.

I do this with the fervent hope that my 145 words will enrichen your life in some small way.

I love to write as my wonderful mother did before me.

I was a nationally syndicated newspaper real estate columnist in 130 papers.

It’s not easy coming up with a topic 7 days a week.

I have a big picture of Jesus on the wall. He’s looking right at me.

His expression seems to ask, “Well Tom, what profound message are you going to come up with today?”

You and I know they are not always profound.

But, they are an honest attempt to help you cope with this world!

If not today, when?

Speaking of mistakes, Warren Buffet, in his annual report, admitted to making a big mistake when buying Precision Castparts Corp. in 2016. He lost 9.8 BILLION DOLLARS.

Yes, all mistakes teach valuable lessons, but are we open to learning from them?

Evidently not, because some of us go on to repeat them. And repeat them.

Why is that?

Is it possible that you would rather blame someone else for some unfortunate event rather than rightfully claim the responsibility yourself?

If that is your response, you’re bound to repeat it again.

Taking ownership, however, begins the process of assimilating wisdom.

There seems to be a shortage of honesty these days.

If you are ever to grow in wisdom, you must be able to recognize yourself as the cause of a mistake and strive to make amends.

In order to live peacefully with yourself, you must be honest with yourself.

And the dividend is that you will become more trustworthy.

If not today, when/

So, how much are you of each?

There are, of course, extremes on one side or the other.

Many of us make too many decisions emotionally while others over-think everything.

Some decisions have to be rendered on an issue that has a large emotional impact on us.

It that happens, it’s hard to have a cerebral approach when we are so emotionally overwrought.

At these moments, we may do or say something that we regret and can’t take back.

We must admit, however, that “We are a drop of intellect in a sea of emotion.”

If we can rely more often on our intellect, which includes the ability to recall lessons learned, we should be able to say and do fewer things we have to take back.

Think about it!

If not today, when?

He was moved to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where he “received follow-up procedures on his injuries this morning.” A tweet posted Friday to Woods’ Twitter account said. “The procedures were successful, and he is now recovering and in good spirits.” (CNN)

His life has certainly had its ups and downs. What an under-statement!

Of course, he’s made some bad decisions along the way.

But, there is a lesson that can be drawn from his life for all of us.

HE KEEPS COMING BACK!

There is no QUIT in him!

After five back surgeries, he had his body ready to play in this year’s Masters Tournament.

Will you rise from your struggles and disappointments to enjoy a better life?

Don’t let the negative aspects of your life define you!

You are much more than that and you have much more to become!

If not today, when?

Does this seem like a time filled with opportunities for you?

Probably not!

Well, if that is your assumption, you’re missing out.

Businesses are failing everywhere.

The reason they’re failing is because they are carrying an ongoing financial overhead that can’t be supported with today’s revenue.

They’ve got lease payments, utility payments, business loans, payroll taxes and state and federal income taxes.

You, however, can start out without those burdens while you build a new business slowly with an overhead that matches the present diminished demand.

As demand grows, as it will, your new business can grow with it.

People will still need those services that are being lost.

The irony is that many families are desperately trying to get by while the amount of money in individual savings accounts is unusually high.

So, there still is demand.

Think about it.

If not today, when?

One of he biggest and long-lasting results of the pandemic is the growing trend of working at home.

Starting out as a temporary way to avoid infection, an increasing number of employees are being told that they will not be returning to the office.

Many employers have learned that employees are just as productive working at home without time wasted driving to and from an office.

Employers are also saving money without the expense of leasing and maintaining an office.

Working from home has practical and emotional consequences for employees.

This is particularly true for those who have young children at home.

Another complication is the adjustment your teenagers have had to make not being in the classroom for the last year.

So, working parents and their children have had to deal with an entirely new daily routine.

I hope that these changes have brought you more positives than negatives.

As my wife always says in times of stress, “Keep on marching.”

Yes, after 690 episodes of my blog, ifnottodaywhen.blog, it is now a podcast on SPOTIFY!

Just copy the link onto a new tab.

You’ll hear a male voice converting my PRINTED WORDS into SPOKEN WORDS.

I think the most amazing feature is the inflection in the voice.

It would seem that the voice actually understands the printed message and is conveying its true meaning with the proper emphasis.

The podcast is short in length, only about one minute.

The first blog recorded is a recent one, “Hard Won Wisdom.”

l, hopefully, will reach more people.

If not today, when?

This is an important question for each of us.

Do you have a certain set of goals that are not negotiable?.

Or, is the attainment of your goals really not a front-and-center priority??

Let me suggest four questions:

1. What are the goals that are MOST important to you.

2. What do you have to do or not do in order to accomplish them?

3. What are you doing now that is jeopardizing your chances of ever reaching your goals?

4. Are you willing to make some corrections in order to be true to your goals?

In order to live with yourself, you must align your decisions and behavior with your goals.

If not today, when?