These are the words I imagined my departed friend speaking to me in his usual upbeat, motivational speaker tone: "Whassup big man? Don't cry! Be tough. Be tough for my little sister"

Though we drifted apart we were still in each other's hearts. As I embraced his sister to comfort her in her grief, she imparted words that embraced and comforted me. She whispered "you know he loved you very much" A million doves flew out of me carrying little pieces of the hurt. Simultaneously, there was an awkwardness that was clearly the result of he and I having drifted apart.

The moral of this series is don't be taken aback if I should hug you and tell you that I love you. My soul can not endure too many more "if only's" or "what if's". Instead, I hope that you will feel complemented by my desire to be close to you.

When have you last taken in the ocean, the mountains, or a forest? When have you last deeply inhaled a fulfilling friendship or relationship? These are things that you must savor or you will risk forgetting to live. Life is to be lived today. While we plan for fantastical future days that frequently never materialize we must not forsake or trivialize the present. Accentuate the positive today. No matter how small that positive thing is, amplify it as absurdly as you like to the point that it drowns out the negative. It's your prerogative. It's your day. Love it no less than you love the vision that you've created for the future.