Today would have been my mom’s 71^st birthday. On Monday, Dad would have been 78. Sometimes it’s hard to believe they’re both gone.

We take so many things in life for granted, and yet every moment is a gift, to be unwrapped and savored. What is it that makes us forget that oh, so important point?

We get wrapped up in our day-to-day routine and before we know it, life has passed us by. We are so busy doing the menial tasks of our lives that we forget to “stop and smell the roses.”

When was the last time you noticed the beauty around you as you were fighting your way through traffic?

Did you completely ignore the incredible sunset because you were talking on your cell phone while driving and telling the kids to quiet down before you have to pull this car over?

Have the leaves all fallen from the trees before you noticed that fall had come and gone?

What about that lake you drive by with the ducks floating around and the sun sparkling on the ripples cascading ever outward? Did you even notice it was there?

We get so caught up in the rat race of life that we tend to forget what’s really important.

Have you told the people closest to you how much they mean to you lately? Have you dropped a note to that teacher who made a difference in your life to let them know what an impact they had on you?

Have you turned off the radio or iPod long enough to hear your own thoughts once in awhile? Are you scared what you may hear?

Slow down… Take a deep breath… And be thankful for all of the gifts you have in your life…

When you learn to be thankful for everything you have in your life, then life seems to slow down…

You don’t let others’ actions get to you.

You tend to notice the beauty around you.

You become a much nicer person to be around.

You can learn to breathe again. Your thoughts become your own again, instead of the lyrics to whatever song happens to play on your radio next.

I’ve gotten some of my best ideas and have solved my own problems many times when driving silently in the car. I know for some people that would be like a death sentence. (My soon-to-be teenage daughter included)

I’ve noticed the more I grow as a person, the less the outside influences appeal to me. I watch a lot less TV, and find I like being alone with myself – something I couldn’t do before.

I suppose my point is this: Life is short.

So, do me a favor:

• Tell your loved ones how much they mean to you.
• Slow down and take a look around you. Open your eyes to the beauty around you.
• BE GRATEFUL – it really does change everything.

We choose our lives by our thoughts, and as Mike Dooley (of Tut.com) so wonderfully sums up, “thoughts become things.”

So, today I choose to smile.

And let’s all say a heartfelt happy birthday to the two most wonderful parents anyone could ever have.

Happy Birthday, Mom and Dad.

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