Each One is Precious

It's easy to overlook the value of a single day. We forget we don't have an endless supply of them, so we often treat our days like paper napkins – use 'em once and toss 'em away. There's always more where they came from, right?

Unfortunately, we shortchange ourselves when we dismiss our days like that.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve tried to see each day for what it really is: a jewel, precious and unique. These jewels join together on a chain that is the story of our life.

More than ever, I’m profoundly grateful for each and every jewel I'm given. I'm grateful that I remain in good outward health, still free from serious complications that accompany the type of blood cancer I have. I'm aware that my treatments could stop working at any time. So I start each day with a vow, pledging to make the best possible use of the new 24-hour gift that’s been given to me. That includes not only enjoying the day to the fullest, but using it as an opportunity for personal growth and transformation.

In the morning, I make it my goal to be a better person than I was the day before. At the end of the day, I look back and think about the ways I succeeded and the many ways I came up short. The next day, I try to do a little better.

Whether you have a serious illness or not, it's good to remember how precious a day can be. None of us knows how many of them we'll have. In my case, I could still have several good years' worth of days ahead. Or maybe not. Either way, I’m doing my best to appreciate every jewel on the chain.

---

Photographer's Footnote: The necklace above was photographed using cross-polarized light.