Ralphie: Because Life Is As Good As It Gets

     We are all hovering at certain stages in our lives. Depending on who you ask, some may say they are happy and content, while others would beg to differ.  Everyone has his or her own reasons for being put in one category or the other. Teetering in a place one may traditionally called mid-life, I have come to understand one thing. I have decided to choose happy, because at every moment, life is as good as it gets. I could dwell on the times I have been short-changed, since we all have our bucket filled with varying amounts of misfortune. But what's the point of the sorrow that comes with harping on what's missing? To take it further, what's the point of thinking that tomorrow will bring so much more than we were given today. We're given life, we don't know its timeline, so embrace it now.

    Tonight, I went to a party for a little boy named Ralphie. I barely knew him except for the fact that he loved dinosaurs and frogs. Ralphie's parents and sister sadly had to say goodbye to their ray of sunshine just before his 6th birthday. Today would have been his seventh birthday.  From his pictures, I could tell his smile was warm and mischievous at the same time. I watched his parents thoughtfully throughout the evening. While their loss was profound, how they have embraced it for the truth it is, was even more profound. They have somehow taken their reality; their today, and found a way to accept it for the beautiful thing it is. They would sing, smile and cry. They would release butterflies and reach up to the sky to celebrate their precious boy. Their fragile wings were just another reminder of our fragile lives.  As it happened, I would look around to see mothers' embrace their children. All along, Ralphie was teaching us the truth, that life is a place to find joy and contentment regardless of what it gives or takes. We smiled as the butterflies fluttered about and a rainbow reached across the sky, because Ralphie was helping us to realize, life is as good as it gets.