Life's Conclusion

I think we forget how precious a birthday is.  After all, a million things could happen in any given year that could bring about the end of our days.  My son is celebrating his 16th birthday today and he could have experienced a life-ending event by now, but he hasn't, which means that our faith in him as a family must press on. After almost five decades of life, I'm learning that there is something more we must do, something we must accomplish, before our lives conclude.  Just saying the word "conclude" makes me wonder how long or short the novel about my life really is. For me, I know I can be a better husband and take my wife out on more dates. I can be a better father and teach my children even more of the wisdom I've gathered over the years.  I can even be a better friend, writer colleague, business owner, and so on.  I've often thought about it.  Do I want to accomplish these things with faith or without it?  We both know we can do it either way, and believe me I've tried both ways, but for me, the difference is the possibility of an extraordinary life with faith that I might have missed out on otherwise.  Because with faith, we know that all that we are to accomplish in life is for a reason.  Without it, we might never know our true purpose and completely understand it.