Editor’s Corner: What about you?

Benjamin Franklin once said, “Lost time is never found again.” He also wrote, “But dost thou love life, then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff life is made of.”

Remembered as one of America's greatest thinkers, Franklin will never be forgotten because he followed his own advice. He was a scientist, an inventor, a statesman, a printer, a philosopher, a musician, and an economist. He never squandered his time, so surely he must have loved life. His ideas and visions helped to lay the foundation for the United States as we know it today. He had a clear vision of the way America should be and he spent his time helping to make sure that it would be.

The very idea of a man with so much dedication puts me to shame. Today, we are so busy trying to figure out what’s coming on television tonight and what time the ball game starts, that we never give a second thought to the legacy we will leave behind. Will the life we live make tomorrow a better place, or are we simply taking up space?

The older you get, the more you think of lost time. Maybe you should have spent more time with your kids when they were growing up, or maybe you should have spent more time with your parents as they grew old. We all have regrets in our life, but in reality there is nothing we can do to change the past. It’s only the future that we hold in our hands.

But thankfully every day really is a new day and it can be a new beginning.

When you say goodbye to a loved one or when you sit in a doctor’s office and hear the word “cancer”, something changes. You have a new perspective on what’s really important in this world. All of a sudden, it’s like God gives you a glimpse of your true life. You think about lost time...

I don’t know about you, but I want to make the most of my life. I want to spend time with my family, travel to far away places, climb the rocks at the river, eat oysters at 2 a.m., walk in the rain, read the classics, and be so happy that I actually sing in the shower. But I also want to make a difference in the world in which I live. When I’m old and in the nursing home, I want to look back at my life and know that I did not squander my time. What about you?

Sandra Brand is the editor of the NEA Town Courier and The Osceola Times. She may be reached by phone at 870-763-4461 or 870-563-2615 or by email at brand@osceolatimes.com.