It was the end of a fabulous day.  I had taken three days off from work and this is how my first day ended.  I stood on the edge of the ocean and watched as the sun released his grip on the day.  Little by little I watched as the fireworks of heaven have cooled and faded into the approaching darkness.  Gradually the glories of this sunset become just another memory as the sun sinks below the murky waves. 

        I was an eyewitness as the great timekeeper of heaven slammed the door and exited the building.  And as that day ended and the door shut I realized that it would never return.  As I stood at the sandy graveside of that day and watched as the blazing coffin was lowered into its watery grave I began to mourn for my fallen friend.  I did not want my day to end; there were too many things I wanted us to do together.  I begin to grieve all those things I had left undone, realizing they are forever lost to me. 

        I was left standing in the silent darkness saddened by the passing of my day.  Then something caught my eye and gladdened my heart.  A shimmer of light twinkled in the sky as a star broke through my darkness.  A reminder that when one door shuts another opens.  Sure, this day had ended, but I had the promise of a new day.  It may be dark now, but the sun is coming up in the morning.   The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.  Our focus must not be on what we have lost but on the many opportunities we have right now.

        Life is full of endings, but every ending is a new beginning.  When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one that has opened for us.  Perhaps you can still feel the vibrations from the slamming door, maybe you can still hear the echo of you broken heart.  Look up!  The sun is about to rise and bring you a fresh start; a new beginning.  Why wish for the privilege of living yesterday over again? You begin a new one every morning.  Today is the opportunity of a new start, the chance to correct what you have left crooked, to fill that which is empty in your life.  Happiness is a choice; choose to begin again.

Something to think about:

• If you have made mistakes, even serious mistakes, there is always another chance for you. And supposing you have tried and failed again and again, you may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call “failure” is not the falling down, but the staying down.

• It is right that you should begin again every day. There is no better way to finish the spiritual life than to be ever beginning.

• Our continual mistake is that we do not concentrate upon the present day, the actual hour, of our life; we live in the past or in the future; we are continually expecting the coming of some special hour when our life shall unfold itself in its full significance. And we do not observe that life is flowing like water through our fingers, sifting like precious grain from a loosely fastened bag.

• Look not mournfully into the past. It comes not back again. Wisely improve the present. It is yours. Go forth to meet the shadowy future, without fear and with a courageous heart.

• Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense. This day is all that is good and fair. It is too dear, with its hopes and invitations, to waste a moment on the yesterdays.

• Fear not that your life shall come to an end, but rather fear that it shall never have a beginning.

Thankful for second chances and new beginnings
Rickey Moore