Don’t Wait until Funerals to Give Flowers
Don’t Wait until Funerals to Give Flowers
This year, I watched the 44th Annual Kennedy Center Honors. This celebration is an annual event honoring individuals that have made a significant impact on American culture. The ceremonies include performances by selected artists. The artists interpret each honoree’s art, usually in song, dance, or spoken word, as a tribute.
This night, of all the performances, I was most moved by the tribute paid to Joni Mitchell. I did not grow up listening to Joni Mitchell’s music, but I knew of her.
“Don’t it always seem to go,
that you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.”
These lyrics are from Mitchell’s 1970 hit, Parking Lot.
During the show, as I listened to Mitchell’s video introduction, I heard the above lyrics and other songs. I realized I knew more of her songs than I thought. Her song, Both Sides Now, was another familiar tune.
I’m always emotional when watching any tribute to musicians. It’s not just the performance. It’s the emotion expressed on the faces of the honorees as they experience homage paid to them. That is part of the emotion I feel. What a brilliant way to show appreciation and love!
We pay tributes at funerals by singing a favorite song of the departed, read poems, and share stories. But when was the last time you shared with someone alive, how much their gift or talent meant to you? I don’t mean a gift they bought from Macy’s, but something that is inside of them that was shared with you and changed your life.
There was a woman at my home church who sang a hymn that I loved, Great is Thy Faithfulness. Sadly, she left this earth not knowing how much hearing her interpretation of that song impacted my spiritual life. She ministered to many people each time she sang a spiritual or hymn. Today, that hymn carries me through whatever I am going through as a reminder of God’s love for me. I owe that to her.
Recently, I experienced the Immersive Van Gogh, a virtual art exhibit showcasing the work on Vincent Van Gogh. It was a history lesson as well as an exhibition. Sadly, this genius, who suffered from mental illness, committed suicide before he got the recognition he deserved. While alive, Van Gogh never knew how talented he was. Yet, Van Gogh became one of the most influential painters of American art.
I am so grateful to my 89-year-old mom for teaching me to sew. I’ve told her many times and even dedicated a blog post to her. Her legacy lives in each apron I’ve created, even when I don’t know who is wearing those aprons. I am glad my mother knows directly from me, what sharing her gift with me, has meant to me.
If someone has thanked you for sharing your gifts, how did it make you feel? How did you feel when you were told about the impact you made on that person’s life that changed it for the better?
I believe in telling the people around us what they mean to us while they are here. Maybe that it what happens as we mature.
If there is someone whose gifts have changed your life, tell that person. Send a card or make a phone call to let that person know. Don’t let another moment go by without doing so. Give praise, appreciation, love, and honor now. Today.
