Recently, my cat Squeakers started losing a lot of weight.  My husband and I took her to the vet, thinking that she was probably dying.  We braced ourselves for the inevitable sad news only to find out that she had hyperthyroidism and just needed to take a pill.  The vet said, "It looks like she'll get another one of those lives."

Wouldn't that be nice?  To get another life?  Another chance?

If you got another one, what would you do?  Anything different?

What if you can have another chance?

I want to share an idea with you.

Think of each day of life as a microcosm of an entire lifetime.

Waking up is like being born.  Daily activities are like living out our life span.  Going to sleep is like dying. 

This perspective means that we practice living out a whole lifetime each and every day!  Isn't that amazing?

What does practice imply?  It means that we can develop our skills, improve our performance, strengthen our tools...learn and grow.

So, if each day presents us with a mini "life" to live, then we get a LOT of chances...a LOT of lives!  Way more than the nine lives of Squeakers the cat. ;-)

It's as if our contract is renewed every day when we wake up.

Sometimes we don't see the daily gift that's available because other perspectives and issues cloud our vision. 

For me, it was tragedy and grief.

I remember the years of recovery after my daughter passed away.  I didn't want to die, but I didn't really want to live either.  I was surviving.

I either wanted to stay close to the past memories, or I wanted to speed up my life and just get it over with so I could be with her again.

At some point it became clear to me that I needed to make a decision.  I said to myself, "I'm not the one who died. So, if I'm left here on this planet to continue my journey, what will I do with my life?"

I chose to really live my life, pain and all....not just hold my breath and get it over with.

This decision was very visceral.  I remember mentally looking backward at my loss and pivoting my focus 180° to face my present and future.  Let me tell you, it wasn't easy, but I knew it was the right thing to do at the time.

So, how about you? What stops you from fully living?

Maybe you're struggling with your own loss, a difficult relationship, a sabotaging behavior, a mediocre existence.  Whatever it is, you can make a choice for life, even in the pain and struggle.

Believe me...there will always be something trying to stop you from making this decision.  The wonderful thing is that you can renew your contract daily and make every day count. 

"So teach us to number our days, so that we may acquire a heart of wisdom"
Psalms (Tehillim) 90:12

Author's Bio: 

Belinda Lams of Soul Organizer is a Certified Professional Life Coach, Professional Organizer, and speaker. She is passionate about helping people live from clarity and purpose. Belinda is available for coaching services by phone and can be reached at bblams@gmail.com.