We really never know…

Sunday’s news of Kobe Bryant’s passing really shook my household. Ryan and I were hanging out Sunday afternoon, watching a movie together, when I got the alert on my phone that the helicopter went down. From there, the news just spiraled and we became engrossed in the details, the outcome, etc. It was tragic, to say the least. I won’t pretend to be a giant Kobe fan or even Laker’s fan for that matter, because the truth is, I don’t follow the NBA, or its players, at all. But this story was much more than the story of the tragic death of a basketball player.

For us, this turned into the story that many others across the country related to. It became the story of a husband and father who lost his life unexpectedly, and too soon. It became the story of an unfinished life, a family who was broken, a family who would have to figure out ways to continue on without two of its members. The loss of Kobe and his daughter, along with the others on the helicopter that day, became a reminder that life is so incredibly short. And of course, we know that, right? But do we LIVE it?

Ryan and I decided to slip away after church for an adults-only lunch date. And at that lunch, Ryan looked across the table at me with tears welling up in his eyes and just said “I’m afraid I’m missing it.”  (Keep in mind, this was pre-Kobe news) His fear is that he’s not doing enough, he’s not doing it right, he’s missing the point….of parenting, loving, living, teaching, working, etc. And ladies hear me say this…find yourself a husband with a heart like this, because you’ll forever remember this exact moment when he is literally moved to tears because he wants to do “it” right. I tried to explain all the ways that he already was doing it right- the kids see him every single morning, reading devotionals, studying the Word. He shows up to every.single.thing. He is there. He cares. He loves. He strives to be all things.

Once the Kobe news hit, all of Ryan’s fears became mine too. We are here for such a short short time, and we just have to be sure that we’re actually making it count. We can plan, and pray, and hope, and wish, but at the end of the day….we really never know when it’ll all end.