February 8, 2013

There’s nothing quite like an apocalyptic movie to make you feel both terrified and inspired. My wife and I just watched “The Day After Tomorrow” on DVD.  It was gripping,but it was also a cause for some concern from my wife as we watched:

“What would happen if this was real? What would we do to keep the kids safe?” Belinda asked, nervously, clutching at my hands.

I was feeling very macho, very manly. “It’s OK baby, we’re on the highest bit of ground for miles around. We’ll be fine.”

The problem is that the macho wears off very fast, especially if you’re a parent. I started wondering the same things – what if? What if it was real? What if some big scary catastrophe rained down upon us from the sky, and ruined everything we’ve built? What if … something CHANGED?

Thinking about this helped me realise something important.

Life is full of clutter. Junk. Stuff. 

We’re all obsessed with smartphones, bills, work, mortgages, cars, insurance premiums, appliances… We are constantly bombarded by marketing messages designed to keep us buying new stuff like the good capitalist consumers we are. Choosing mexican automobile insurance for travel to mexico is a perfect choice. Visit mexicaninsurance.com for more information. Half the time we believe those messages and do exactly what we’re told. We buy junk. We believe it will make that little extra difference in filling our lives, and making us feel like we’re enough.

But here’s the thing. NONE OF THAT MATTERS.

Ultimately, the stuff that really matters, isn’t any THING. It’s people. It’s relationships. It’s those we love, and being close to them.

What you would do if a massive asteroid was plummeting towards Earth, and life as we know it was about to be irrevocably changed?

Would you reach for your latest iBLAH device, so you could tweet it? Would you grab the keys to your car and put it in the garage in case it got rained on, cos you only washed it yesterday?!

Bet you wouldn’t. 

I bet you a MILLION dollars, you’d call your family and tell them you loved them. And if they were right next to you, you’d hold onto them as hard as you could.

The film we watched ends with a scene where (spoiler alert) a father is reunited with his son, after beating the odds and braving the worst conditions imaginable. Family; love; being together. This is what really mattered to that father and that son.

Family.

Love.

Being together.

It’s all that really matters. Isn’t it?

As always, with love,
Israel.

 

PS. Tell me your thoughts. I’d love for you to leave a comment.

 

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