The week before he died, he was in an OKC hospital when he had to make a decision on whether to continue seeking treatment/possible heart transplant and spending six months in the hospital or going home. He chose to go home. Hospice met him there.

We were told the hospital was giving him a bag of medicine that would last 26 hours. At the end of the 26 hours, his body would start the process of shutting down. Two of the 26 hours were spent driving home.

His wife, children, and grandchildren were all there. We and other relatives from town were there as well. Relatives from out-of-state quickly made the trip back home. Ronnie was the center of attention. We laughed. Told stories. Caught up. All the while, without acknowledging it, looking at clocks on our phones & our watches as the 24 remaining hours ticked by.

Everyone gave his immediate family alone time and then would pop back in to check on "things".

For me, at least, it was the weirdest thing to feel the ticking of the clock. Ronnie didn't want to sleep, but his body forced him to. Sleeping took away part of the remaining hours.

Eventually, the 26 or so hours ran out. Days later so did his life.

Since last Thursday I've spent a lot of time just thinking about him and all he did with me & for me as a child. In the middle of meetings and hearings, a flash of him from my childhood would pop unexpectedly into my mind. Those thoughts would just randomly appear.

What has not left me has been the thought of those 26 hours. Knowing at the moment the drug was first administered, the clock started ticking.

But, I've come to realize that is true for all of us. The clock is ticking. He was one of the lucky ones. Someone told him, the clock starts running out "now." Most of us never get the "heads up". Our life just suddenly stops. No advance warning. Just the blink of an eye & we're gone.

Some of you have been reading this and wondering what you would do with 26 hours notice. I think you missed the point. The clock is ticking right now. What are you going to do with your life? What if you're not given the heads up? What if it's today? Ronnie got to say what he wanted to say. He got to make decisions many do not. He was one of the lucky ones. The question isn't "What would you do with 26 hours?" The question is "Your life may end at anytime without warning. What are you going to do to make your life count...mean something...You have the ability to create your legacy. What do you choose it to be?"

I hope you are one of the lucky ones, too. But, just a reminder. Your clocks...and mine...are ticking now. All we've got to figure out now is "What are we going to do?"

Live better. Live every minute of every hour of every day you are given. Some would love to have just a few of the hours you wasted today. Their lives ran out last week.