We live in a society that’s overrun with warning labels. From
disclaimers on pills, to “use-by” dates on soup cans, to danger signs on chain
saws—warning labels draw our attention to impending hazards. Recently I
received a box with a precious gift inside. The sender had attached a big red
sticker to the package that said, fragile: handle with care. When I think about
life and its fragility, I wonder if we shouldn’t all wear one of those red
stickers.
It’s not a good idea to cruise through life thinking that we are
invincible and that everything is going to be just fine—only to discover that
we are far more fragile than we thought. It takes only a call from the doctor
telling us that we have a life-threatening disease, or the swerve of a careless
driver in front of us to remind us that life is extremely uncertain. There are
no guarantees! None of us can be certain of another breath. So the psalmist has
an important piece of advice . . . a warning label of sorts: “Teach us to
number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90:12).
Let’s choose to live as though this were our last moment on earth by
loving more deeply, forgiving more readily, giving more generously, and
speaking more kindly.
That’s how to handle life with care.
Yesterday is gone; tomorrow is uncertain; today is here. Use it wisely. (RBC)
