Slice of Life- 11/31- There Is No Present Like Time

As part of a friend’s birthday celebration, I went to see a movie today.  Sadly, the movie itself wasn’t that great, but one line from the movie caught my attention:  “There is no present like time.”  My initial interpretation of this line was the obvious play on the phrase, “There is no time like the present.”  Since the movie’s plot revolved around people living out their twilight years, the idea of not waiting to do or accomplish things that are important to you definitely underscored its theme.  I was encouraged to not be afraid of that was to come and face tough decisions head-on.

This reminded me of a story from a couple years ago, when the first movie in this series came out.  It was Father’s Day, and I was  missing my dear dad terribly.  I was also in the midst of making a major career decision and really did not know which way to go.  He had always been someone I could look to for wisdom and counsel, and I missed this part of our relationship terribly.   As the movie unfolded, one of the characters looked and acted just like my dad.  He was Dave:  his clothes; his gait; his sense of humor and even build; the way he looked at life, rolling up his sleeves and going all in.  Tears streamed down my face for much of the movie.  At the end of the film, the characters also had to make decisions about their futures.  And again, the message was to not be afraid of challenges ahead.  I knew Dad was speaking to me through this experience, and I knew what I needed to do.

Weeks later, I shared this experience with my mom and couldn’t wait to hear how much she had seen Dad  in the main character, as I did.  Surprisingly, she had not noticed any similarities- not even a bit.  It truly was a gift just for me- that two hours with my dad, giving the phrase “there’s no present like time” a whole new meaning.