A life "in Order"

The man sitting in front of me proudly proclaims, “I have my life in order and it feels real good.” I find myself strangely proud of this client as I am keenly aware that the requirements upon him currently are much more stringent than that of clients still living within the residential substance abuse program.

            There is something about the glow of this man’s face; something concerning the peace exhibited by the relaxed nature of his jaw and the gentle presence of wrinkles at his eyes that tell me he believes what he is saying to be true.  

Facing imminent death, doctors will often tell their patients to “get their life in order”. Although seldom a desired statement (especially from a trusted physician intimately aware of the peculiarities of our case), the counsel is always wise. All this got me to wondering – why wait?

Why do we wait to get our lives in order until we have lost family, home, and job?  Why do we wait to hear such a pronouncement from our doctor and then become so devastated at the prospect of the work ahead of us?  Truth be told, like waiting to wash today’s dishes until tomorrow, we tend to hope that some how, some way, we will be absolved from the responsibility.  After all, perhaps someone else will do it. And if not, we rationalize; we can always do it later.

I’m not beating the drum of “tomorrow is guaranteed to no one”.  Although true, that is not what is filling my mind.  What amazes me is that this globe is literally jammed with people who do not possess the peace that accompanies one who has his/her life in order. I find that incredibly sad.

Can you say what my client said today and mean it?  If not, do you have a plan to make it happen?  What would your “life in order” even look like?  John Denver said, “There are many ways of being in this circle we call life” – if he was right, then perhaps your life “in order” would look differently than my client’s, or mine! But here’s the thing – and there is really no way to get around this – if your life is in order you will feel good and have peace … peace that eludes those who are waiting for the doctor’s words or for tomorrow’s sunrise.