We're all going to die one day.

Here is a picture of a sign for a funeral home in my neighborhood.

I take pictures while walking. I snapped the picture of this sign one day earlier this spring. I’m not certain why I had taken this picture, but felt that it was a good one for this blog entry. It is a sign that points to the place we’re all going to go to eventually.

I’m fortunate to be young and healthy, but we never know when our last day on Earth will be. Anything can happy. I hope to live long and healthy and I hope you do, too.

Our days on Earth are limited. We all know that one thing is certain. We all die sooner or later. It reminds me country singer Kenny Chesney’s song, “Don’t blink.” At the start of the song, Kenny sings about a man who turned 102-years-old and recommends that the secret to life is “don’t blink.”

I turned 30 this year. I didn’t really think much about it. I still feel young at heart. I do think about the years. I am still surprised to realize we’re in 2010!? Sometimes when I’m thinking I think that it is still 2006 or 2007.

During the 80s my family was so excited for 1992 because that was the last four digits of our telephone number. Kids born in 1992 are now turning 18. I thought that it would take forever for my senior year in high school to end in 1998. The 12 years since then have flown by. During the 80s I grew up hearing Prince’s song, “1999” and thought 1999 was “the future.” Things would be different. And things are different, but it didn’t feel like it. As you already know, 1999, is the past. It was a decade ago.

Rubin Gretchen had written in her book, “The Happiness Project” that the days are long and the years are short.” Her words are true. I like to keep her quote in mind. It also reminds me of the lyrics to another song, “I hope you dance” by country singer Lee Ann Womack. Part of the song says, “who wants to look back on their years and wonder where they’ve gone?” I find inspiration from this song. My grandmother called it “the baby song” because the music video may have had a baby or babies in it. My grandmother Carrie Phillips-Pettry passed away on June 1, 2003, just three short years after “I hope you dance” was released.

Yes, it is certain. We’re all going to pass away one day. Please note that my purpose in reminding you of this fact isn’t to depress anyone or to make them feel down. It is to remind myself and all of us that life is precious, that we have a lot to be grateful for and we have the opportunity to do so many things. I was once listening to an audio program or an inspirational DVD. It was by one of the success gururs like Mark Victor Hansen or Bob Proctor. I’m not sure who said it, but I remember this. The graveyard is a place with more than buried bodies. It is a place where many dreams were never lived out or fulfilled. It is a place where unwritten screenplays, books, inventions, were never completed. How sad it is to pass away without leaving some mark on the world or without leaving it a better place.

My advice: live life to the fullest. I often find myself getting behind on cleaning and organizing. I spend more time creating and making things and sometimes get disorganized from time to time. Today I organized because I don’t want to end up being on a show like TLC Hoarders. Please laugh aloud at that comment. I’m not that bad. But I did throw away a lot of newspapers and magazines.

I had a stack of birthday cards for my 30th birthday that was on March 26th of this year. I didn’t want to throw them away because they remind me of good times, but I didn’t want to keep them either. So, I decided to take note of them here in my blog.

Card # 1: “I’m smiling because you’re my brother … and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. Happy Birthday.” Love, Carrie [Pettry] and Matt [her boyfriend.”

Card # 2: “Blah.. It’s your birthday and there’s nothing you can do about it…except celebrate. Have a Great Day!” Picture of Charlie Brown and Snoopy on cover. “We hope you have a great birthday, Danny! Love, Jimmy [brother] and Emily [sister-in-law]. It was obvious that Emily had written this and Jimmy had only signed his name in the card. My sister-in-law, Emily has nice handwriting. Jimbo has always had distinctive handwriting.

Card # 3: “If I had an uncle like you… They’d all be doing the “happy dance, too! Have a Great Birthday.” Picture of Snoopy and Woodstock dancing on cover. “you’re an awesome uncle!” Love, Gage [nephew 3-years-old]. The handwriting was obviously Emily again.

Card # 4: “Good nephew, good heart, good life, good luck, good feelings, good guy, good days. With a nephew like you, it’s all good. Happy Birthday.” Just blue and green colors on card. “We wouldn’t miss the opportunity to let you know we’re thinking of you and wishing you a ‘happy birthday!’” Love Aunt Sonya and Gilber, too. Good, good, good was printed at the bottom of the card.

Card # 5: “For a son who means so much. Because it’s your birthday, it’s the perfect time to celebrate the good man you are. Right from the start, you’ve been the kind of son that every parent dreams of having [Did they read this card? Laugh aloud]. And it’s been such a joy watching you grow and change to become the man you are. A son like you deserves happiness, not only on his birthday, but every day of the year and that’s exactly what you’re wished – with love. Happy Birthday.” Golden card. Picture of bird on cover. It is in gold print, too. Maybe a sparrow, Robin, or Cardinal. “Danny, We hope you have a great day. We love you very much. Love you, Mom and Dad.” Written in mom’s hand-writing. Hmm.. all the cards were written by females.

Cleaned out my car, too. Guess what? It had birthday cards that had been sitting in the back seat since March from co-workers and friends. Going to read them here in a minute, but only wanted to share these five cards above.

I’m 30 this year. Fifteen years ago, I was 15-years-old. In 15 more years, I’ll be 45-years-old.

What are some long-term goals? What do I want in 5, 10, 15 years? That will be 2015, 2020, and 2025. Wow, that is the future and it will probably fly by just like these last 15 years. Is it time to start re-thinking life, goals, and mission. Maybe.

I know one thing is certain. I’m going to complete a book that I’m writing before the end of this year. It is a book on being a nicer person. I’ve completed 7 out of the 12 chapters at this time. Four more chapters to go!

Do You Want to Read a Self-Improvement Book That Will Change Your Life? If so, check out the book I've written, "Discover Hidden Secret Wisdom." Maybe you should read a good self-improvement book now. It's never too late until it is too late.

Recently,

My mentor Dr. David Austin had said this about my book: