I knew I must have my box of facial tissues close at hand, for this was going to be “one of those times.” The series with this family was concluding. From the very first episode, I was hooked. This was one of the most genuine and profound television drama series, I’ve ever viewed.  I’m quite certain the writer (s)  has/have undergone many of the scenarios they wrote about because most people in life experience many of these situations. This was “real” life; the good, bad, ugly and beauty of life- this series possessed it.

At what age do we realize life is not a “fairy tale?”  Are we teens or adults; middle age or elderly? As a  young child I learned that my life was nothing like that of my classmates or other children I met. So too did one of the characters on this television series.

In this television family of different personalities, even different ethnicities, the writers “got it.” Yes, there were some aspects of the story which didn’t align with my morals, but isn’t that parallel to reality? Aren’t there situations, family dynamics and personalities which are different from ours? What should always be constant and what remained constant in this series, was the love, support and devotion of this family to one another, no matter what happened. That was one of my primary reasons for being drawn into the series. The family was always there for one another, no matter what had occurred the hours or days prior.

It spanned more than fifty years. What does our life look like if we have endured fifty years? What will it look like fifty years from now, if you are blessed to survive another fifty years?  Perhaps the reason I became so intertwined with these characters is that with some of the episodes it was as though the script should have been entitled, “This is Your Life.”

For many people when they come to the end of their life, they wish they could “hang on” just a little longer. They desire just a few more hours or days, but when God calls us, “it is time to go.” Whether your life has been good or bad, complete or incomplete it is “your time.”

 Just as when we are alive and fulfilling what we believe are our goals and desires, if we are relying on the Lord to lead us, He has His plans in His time. That seems to be even more valid when it is His time to end our lives on this earth.  

One of our lead characters in this television series had lives like many of us. She was a teen, young adult, wife, mother and grandmother. She had the joys and sorrows of life, but her earthly life was now ending. Her family wanted to hold her closer a little longer, but they had what each of us have; their beautiful memories of the person they loved.

When we are at the end of our lives, we don’t dwell on the negative. We are thinking of the glorious memories which kept us going. Perhaps the best time to make those memories so that we have them as we take our final breath is to view each day as it truly is; God’s gift to us.  Ecclesiastes 3:2 NLT, A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest.