Consider the Lilies...

Sometimes we get so caught up in the drama of everyday life we forget what’s important. At the cemetery where my parents are buried, sitting at their freshly covered graves, missing them and thinking about life and death. I began looking around at all the graves and had an epiphany that forever changed my life. In as much as we all live from day to day and no matter how important or unimportant we feel within our community, social circle, work or family, death is the great equalizer. Everyone in the cemetery, regardless of their social status, what they did for a living or who they were in life didn’t really matter there. Just to the left and down the hill from my father’s grave is the body of a man that was homeless and his grave is marked with a simple stone. Up the hill and a little to the right of my mother’s grave is a grandiose marbled sculpture fit for a king, obviously marking the grave of someone in the community that was very influential and wealthy. The real issue is that everyone there is dead and what counts is how (both negatively and positively) they affected, influence and loved those around them while they were living. As a result of much thought I realized there must be some kind of message in all of this so I shared my thoughts with my family and developed what has become something we call the “Cemetery Test”. No matter how bad things get, no matter what is going on, we run each issue through the “test”. So here’s the primer: In considering any issue, there are only three things that matter at the end of your life and in the cemetery. 1. Your relationship with God -Even if you don’t believe in God, it is all settled in the cemetery. 2. The love, fellowship and kindness you leave behind with those you knew no matter if it was good or bad still counts there. 3. Anything left un-done still counts there. As we face situations we ask ourselves; Would this count at the cemetery?…Would this matter there?…Would this issue make a difference if I were a permanent resident of the cemetery?
This doesn’t presume to answer all questions definitively. However, it does give us a better understanding of what is important and allows us some clarity to refocus and re-prioritize. Next time you are having difficulty and need direction, think about it, consider where it matters. The chances are if it passes the three indicators of the cemetery test, you should address the issue. If an issue is something that you deem to be eventually unimportant after considering this test , then that’s a good indication that you should probably let go of the worry and concern for the time being and refocus on things that count at the cemetery.
Finally, no matter how bad things get or how discouraged you become, don’t lose site of how sweet life can be if you concentrate on the beauty that lies within the simple things that exist all around you. Consider the lilies of the field...they toil not…. Never give up and never surrender to despair and grief and if all else fails, eat chocolate.