I've been thinking a lot lately about a sermon at a wedding that I heard many years ago.  The priest started talking about walking around a graveyard and looking at the markers.  Back then, like you are now, most of the people were puzzled about just where this could be going.  After all death and marriage don't normally go hand in hand (there are other topics here yet to be discussed but not now).  He continued on with how he was looking at the date of birth and the date of death but yet the most important part of anyone's life was the "-" dash in between.  He continued on with a beautiful sermon on how what happens in between is the most important parts of our lives.
   Now I probably have done a total disservice to his sermon but my point is that not only has this stuck with me, but I now focus on my 'dash'.  I conduct my daily life the way one should and try to think and do for others.  I'm not perfect and nor does it happen all the time, after all I am human, but as I watch the blossoms of spring and the newness of life spread all around again it brings me hope.  And as I hope I wonder what it would be like if we all focused a little more on the little dashes in our lives.