Water Your Flower

We were really late and seriously rushed when we jumped in the car. I was irritable from being tired after a long day of work but we went anyway, we promised. My grandma sat at the door waiting for us and immediately I felt guilty for making her wait.

My mom and I ushered her into the large dining hall a few minutes late to celebrate the May birthdays, including hers, at the nursing home where she lives. We were seated right up front and had to excuse ourselves as people moved giant awkward wheelchairs out of the way to clear a passage. A little uncomfortable and slightly embarrassed, we took our seats while the opening choir composed of lovely church volunteers began to sing.

A little flustered, I sat there trying to restore my calm, when the Director of the Home began reading Life Summaries of each of the residents who lived there and celebrating a May birthday. The stories were beautiful and touching and I felt my body relax.

Tears bubbled up as my own grandmother's Life Summary was read to the crowd of over 100. The entire speech was just under 5 minutes and captured her true loves: her family, her community and her flowers.

My thoughts traveled ahead to my 80th birthday. What would they say about my life? And what would they say if they only had 5 minutes?

I know what they won't say. They won't talk about the times in my life when I doubted myself, my decisions and my life direction- nor will they share the unfairness I felt when I lost money when the economy tanked, or the times when I felt heavy after gaining a few pounds. They won't talk about the time I didn't get the job or when my relationships ended and definitely not about when I was tired and flustered and late for an evening with my grandmother.

What the speech will include will be how I handled those life experiences, how my faith and trust and love brought me through and how I celebrated life instead of feared it, how I took risks and gave instead of waiting to receive, how I expressed my beliefs rather than hide behind the norms of society and pursue my potential. I hope at least :), this or something even better!

No matter what age you are, you still have time to create the content of your birthday speech! The content is entirely up to you! There is no room or time for seriousness or all the things that have the potential to get to us and bring us down, let it go and live exactly how you want that 5 minute speech to sound!

What will your story be?

Kelly McIntyre M.Sc. Life/Career Coach

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