MARION'S  RUN  PAGE  

			THE  DASH

		       I  read  of  a  man  who  stood  to  speak
		       at  the  funeral  of  a  friend.
		       He  referred  to  the  dates  on  her  tombstone
		       from  the  beginning...  to  the  end.

		       He  noted  that  first  came  the  date  of  her  birth
		       and  spoke  of  the  following  date  with  tears,
		       but  he  said  what  mattered  most  of  all
		       was  the  dash  between  those  years.

		       For  that  dash  represents  all  the  time
		       that  she  spent  alive  on  earth...
		       and  now  only  those  who  loved  her
		       know  what  that  little  line  is  worth.

		       For  it  matters  not,  how  much  we  own;
		       the  cars....  the  house...  the  cash.
		       What  matters  is  how  we  live  and  love
		       and  how  we  spend  our  dash.

		       So  think  about  this  long  and  hard...
		       are  there  things  you'd  like  to  change?
		       For  you  never  know  how  much  time  is  left.
		       (You  could  be  at  "dash  mid-range.")

		       If  we  could  just  slow  down  enough
		       to  consider  what's  true  and  real,
		       and  always  try  to  understand
		       the  way  other  people  feel.

		       And  be  less  quick  to  anger,
		       and  show  appreciation  more
		       and  love  the  people  in  our  lives
		       like  we've  never  loved  before.

		       If  we  treat  each  other  with  respect,
		       and  more  often  wear  a  smile...
		       remembering  that  this  special  dash
		       might  only  last  a  little  while.

		       So,  when  your  eulogy's  being  read
		       with  your  life's  actions  to  rehash...
		       would  you  be  proud  of  the  things  they  say
		       about  how  you  spent  your  dash?

								-- unkown