Some well chosen words

Love and work are the cornerstones of our humanness.
-Sigmund Freud

Over at Anvilcloud's page (link on my sidebar because I'm too lazy to put it in just now...) the quote of the day today was this.

I've been giving a lot of thought (gee, really??) to both love and work. I'm having trouble this week getting into both, actually. My mind has been on mortality, not so strangely.

A couple weeks back I took a last-minute trip to Ontario to attend Henry's funeral. It was a case of someone who left far too early, and it hit me like a tonne of bricks.

I got scared.

I hadn't thought about the fact that I, too, could simply be here today and not, tomorrow. I went into a panic of sorts, suddenly wanting to contact everyone I know to remind them they're still on my radar. For good or bad, this seemed like a hugely ominous task because -- I know so very many people!

Yesterday I received a phone call from L., who was Henry's fiance when he lived here in Calgary. Talk about the last person on the planet I was expecting to hear from! I had struggled with whether or not to contact her to inform her of Henry's passing. Their engagement was over 15 years ago, and I wasn't all that clear in my own mind if it was the "right" thing to do. My sister had asked me about it, and I had told her where I stood. She took it upon herself to contact L., and as it turned out, it was the right move. L. and I had a lengthy conversation and she seemed thankful to have been kept in the loop.

Now, with respect to love and work and how they both may relate to mortality, I guess I simply don't want to let either slip by without giving them both my best shot.