Today I received a request from a friend, urging me to watch this video found at YouTube called “99 Balloons.” At first, I kept telling him that I have already heard the song “99 red balloons,” and that I will look at it some other time. I must give it to him and his persistence that I finally asked him to just send me the YouTube link since I could just view it over YM. Would you imagine that it was NOT the song “99 Red Balloons,” rather something more… awe inspiring.
The video clip was more of a movie or slideshow, showcasing the full life of a baby boy named Eliot Mooney. He was a baby boy who, even before he was even born, was diagnosed of Trisonomy 18 or Edward’s Disease. Doctors predicted that he would not reach childbirth, but he did, and in fact, he defined what the medical world dictated, and lived his life to the fullest. Eliot lived for 99 days, and for each day his parents celebrated it as his birthday. And for each day of his wonderful life, he was able to touch lives and inspire others to make the most of each living day. He is truly a manifesto of God’s greatness without the lengthy sermons and flashy slide shows. In fact, God showed His goodness and love through a baby boy who did not even get to utter a word. Amazing.
The video brought tears to my eyes, really, for a lot of reasons. A) I am a mess when it comes to children, especially those who are so utterly helpless. B) Reminds me how life is just too short. C) God is good. D) I am thankful that God is there for my children…. and other factors.
Sometimes we cannot help but be a bit busy in our lives. In fact, I have people virtually screaming at my ear, urging me to take it slow. I do, sometimes, but perhaps not as much as others or myself would have liked. There is this fear that if I slow down or stop, my whole world would once again crash down on me. Hard to explain, really, but God and I have talked about that a great deal.
The story of Eliot reminds me of the book, “Tuesdays with Morrie,” which I was able to read a couple of months back. To date, it is still one of my favorite books, and I am still pining for my own copy of the book, preferably hard bound. Like the story of Eliot, the book Tuesdays with Morrie also gives me a wake up call to how I live my life every day. And, like Eliot’s story, I find myself rethinking my life and perhaps often arriving at opportune times in my life where I am just about to drive myself to the ground.
The stories often remind people like me to actually live each day, and not just live through it. While sometimes I do find myself stepping back and just enjoy, there are many times where the routines in our lives make us just move from one day to another without even smelling the flowers, and seeing beauty.
As of the moment, I am still a bit confused, speechless, touched, and all a mix of emotions that are making my feelings turn into … a huge jumble of stuff.
Thank God I am alive; and thank God for taking good care of my family and friends.
How about you? Have you stopped to smell the flowers today (and not just take a picture)?
Here, in case you haven’t seen the clip yet, this is it:
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