Greetings to all!!! We are well into 2009. I have come to the realization that the older I get, the quicker time seems to pass by. I remember as a child that I could barely wait for the day when "I grow up" and now that I am older I often ponder that thought of what it would be like to be a child again. I am certain that all of us share these same thoughts.

It is apparent that we cannot turn back the hands of time and must press on as we journey through life. As stated in previous blogs, I am a student of leadership. I have fallen in love with learning. I love to read, discuss, experience, and even write new things. One of my favorite authors is John C. Maxwell. I remember reading one of his many books on attitude and he made this statement: "Be careful what you fall in love with." He proceeded to give examples of people whom had fallen in love with "things." Some examples were: Thomas Edison fell in love with inventions. Henry Ford fell in love with the auto mobile. The Wright brothers fell in love with airplanes.

I am in awe at what these as well as many others accomplished by falling in love with something. I recently read a poem written by Michael Josephson and wanted to share it with all of you. It is titled, "What will matter." Please enjoy and share your thoughts!!!

What Will Matter

By: Michael Josephson

Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.

There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.

All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten,

will pass to someone else.

Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.

It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.

Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear.

So too, your hopes, ambitions, plans and to-do lists will expire.

The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.

It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end.

It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.

Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.

So what will matter? How will the value of your days be measured?

What will matter is not what you bought but what you built,

not what you got but what you gave.

What will matter is not your success but your significance.

What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.

What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion,

courage or sacrifice that enriched,

empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example.

What will matter is not your competence but your character.

What will matter is not how many people you knew,

but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone.

What will matter is not your memories but the memories of those who loved you.

What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.

It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice.

Choose to live a life that matters.

On a tombstone there are two dates, the day in which you breathed your first breath and the day that you breathed your last. In between those two dates is a dash. The dash represents our entire life. The dash represents all that matters in our lives. When you draw your last breath, what will your dash represent? I welcome each of you to share your thoughts on the words above.