In that moment his life flashed before his eyes. I am sure you think you know where this is going but stay with me. In two weeks I will be celebrating my birthday. This time around and considering recent events in my life, it will be significant. As I approach it, I have found myself suddenly having these flash backs to little moments in my life. Some of these moments are seemingly insignificant and yet there they are jumping into my head. Others, far more significant, stir deep emotions as I recall them. Together they form a mosaic of my life. This morning, as I contemplated them, I felt compelled to write them down.

I came upon this almost ancient jackknife in the bottom of my dresser drawer. That was all it took for the memory to jump out at me. I am ten years old and I’m with my dad. We are in our woods searching for just the right branch for my slingshot. It will be the first of many, but this one is special. Dad explains that we need not only the right tree. We also need a branch that will form just the correct “Y” shape for the slingshot. I remember whittling it to perfection with dad’s jackknife. As it passed his inspection, he handed me his jackknife and told me I should keep it. He reminded me that I need to take care of it. He told me to treat it as a tool, and nothing more. That was my dad’s way. Life was a series of lessons. He taught me to be respectful of the tools and words we use. Both would hurt people if not used carefully. Now looking at the knife I know how that little lesson has shaped my life.

Now more memories are triggered. I am sixteen and about to get my driver’s license. I don’t recall a lot about all that training but this sticks in my head. Ten and two and turn into the skid. I know I haven’t always strictly adhered to that ten and two. Yet, turning into the skid has saved me countless winter days.

Suddenly, I am thirteen and experiencing my first crush, Gloria Lowenhagen. Crushes are like Red Bull, powerful for the very short time they last. Alas, Gloria moved on and so did I. If you grew up in my era, you went to high school in the sixties. Do you remember the fairy loop on the back of your shirt? For the record, and not to brag, mine was taken a fair amount of the time. Ah, those days. If you never heard of this trick, you would have to use your imagination.

I’m twenty-six now. I have left my teaching job up north and have moved to Madison. I know no one here and am more than a little anxious. I walk into my new school and meet the woman of my dreams. She doesn’t know yet, but I will pursue her relentlessly until she gives in. We will start a relationship that is now nearly fifty years strong.

In this next scene of my life flashback, I am thirty-three years old. We are in the fourth year of our marriage and about to become parents. It is the day of the birth and I am anxious, fearful, excited, and tired. Labor has been long and unsuccessful and an emergency C-section is underway in the next room. Suddenly, the nurse is here and Bailey is placed in my arms. I will sit with her for the next twelve hours as Deb recovers from surgery. I will rock with her and I will bond with her, a bond that will last a lifetime.

And now I am seventy years old. I am preparing for my youngest daughter’s wedding. She has asked me to be both dad and officiant today. I am fairly distracted by those two roles colliding. The wedding will be held outside at this beautiful farm in the countryside. While I am rehearsing for the ceremony, a woman approaches me. She tells me that I am needed on the backside of the barn. As I round the corner, there with sunlight beaming down on her, stands Kathryn. She is breathtaking in her wedding dress and I am speechless. My relationship with Kathryn has always been one of adventure. She was my tomboy, but in this moment she is this beautiful woman that I had almost not seen. From now on, I will not fail to see both sides of Kathryn. I will love the adventurous tomboy she can be all the while admiring the beautiful women she is.

One more memory pops into my head. I am standing on the dock outside our cabin. My grandkids, Jackson and Adela, have decided they will learn how to fish. They have chosen me to teach them. Safe to say, that between improvisation on my part and ingenuity on theirs, we succeeded. My aha moment here is that dad not only gave me his lessons, he taught me to do the same.

In two weeks I will be seventy-five. It is not a mystery that my life should flash before me as I accept the truth of my age. I feel I have earned the right to look back on my life with some amount of pride. I’ve made it this far and it’s not a bad story.

No one should wait until the last moment to have their life flash before their eyes. Let it be like that favorite movie you watch for the second and third time. Each time you watch it, you notice something new. Here’s hoping your life is like that movie, better each time you recall the moments.