Don't put things off; cherish your life

I was at a first birthday party for a friend's son on Saturday, and as I sat there watching all the kids running around I couldn't help but ask myself, "Where has the time gone?"

I could remember when almost all of their mothers were pregnant with them. That day, each of the kids were running around the room, screaming and laughing, while having a blast with simple items like balloons.

I remember sleeping in the hospital waiting room the day my niece was born, and now she is preparing to start kindergarten in the fall.

She started softball a couple weeks ago, and it has been fun working with her as she learns the concept of the sport.

One of my nephews is 2-years-old, while my youngest nephew will be turning 1 this month.

I have watched him grow from a screaming, colicky baby to the little man that makes engine noises while pushing his cars around and making an awful face when he is told no.

Friends are graduating college, or continuing on to graduate school, while I sit in my hometown and miss the good times from high school.

Country cruises, obscene music and long talks made any teenage drama seem easy to conquer.

I graduated from college just over a year ago, and will have been at this job for a year in May.

A little over a year ago, I had no idea what I was going to do with my life. Even after college I was working two jobs to make ends meet, carrying over my sleepless school-work schedule into my newly class free life.

I am so happy I found a job I love and got out from behind a greasy counter, but where has the time gone?

I'll be 24 in a couple months, and I can remember a time when that age just seemed so old to me. As a 17-year-old kid working the drive-thru window at a fast food restaurant, I always gave my mid-20s co-workers a hard time because that age seemed so impossible to reach.

Now, I keep promising myself I will make all these changes. I want to make a memorable impact, but it seems time has started to fly by and every time I start to regain sight of some of these goals another month, or year, has gone by.

I would like to find time to travel and see old friends. We keep making plans, but something always comes up. It's been more than a year since I saw the friends I made in Evansville.

I recently found myself asking the same question.

"Where has the time gone?"

As former classmates and family members have passed away it makes me realize life may not be as long as we originally planned as 16-year-olds cruising down country roads.

It's important not to lose sight of our goals or put them off because we just might not have the time later.

Cherish every moment because you never know when will be your last.

Sabrina is a staff writer for the Greene County Daily World. She can be reached by email at swestfall@gcdailyworld.com or by telephone at 847-4487.