Friday, August 14, 2009

The True Story of the Best Gift Ever Given


My goal in giving a gift is to make the recipient cry. I know it sounds bad, but I am talking about a good cry. A gift that touches the person so much it brings them to tears. For Mother's Day this year I succeeded.


I purchased this book from Amazon:
An Hour to Live, an Hour to Love: The True Story of the Best Gift Ever Given by Richard and Kristine Carlson

From Publishers Weekly
On their 18th wedding anniversary, in 2003, Richard Carlson (author of the bestselling Don't Sweat the Small Stuff) presented his wife, Kristine, with a short manuscript called An Hour to Live. He imagines he has an hour to live and poses questions originally asked by spiritual guide and author Stephen Levine: whom would you call? what would you say? and why are you waiting? Uncannily, the text foreshadowed Carlson's death three years later, at age 45, of a pulmonary embolism. Though he had no chance to make that last phone call, his wife (and the reader) already knows his feelings for her and their children. We also know what was important to him, which boils down to the old chestnut: no one, on their deathbed, ever wishes they'd spent more time at the office.

Review
"An Hour to Live, an Hour to Love is a genuine love story and a moving reminder that in the midst of our busyness, our lives revolve around a few irreplaceable human beings. Reading these poignant pages made me stop in my tracks, hug my husband, call my daughter, and pet my cat." -- Victoria Moran, author of Creating a Charmed Life

So I took on Richard's challenge. I wrote my mom a letter telling her everything that I would want her to know if I knew I would never have the chance again to tell her. I gave her the letter and book for Mother's Day and loved the feeling of sharing my thoughts with her.



If you had one hour to live and could make just one phone call, who would you call? What would you say? And why are you waiting?






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