The piece below came thru via email, followed by the story behind the essay. I'm posting them both:
Last Tuesday, The Times profiled Ann Wells of Laguna Niguel, whose
13-year-old newspaper essay about loss and cherishing each day has been
reborn on the Internet. Wells, 76, penned the column a couple of years after
her sister unexpectedly died, and several years before she would lose her
husband.
Her work somehow made its way to the Internet, where it moves by e-mail and
chain letters, compliments of the forward button, and has been renamed "A
Story to Live By." Wells, a retired secretary and occasional freelancer, was
stunned that the essay, first published in The Times in April 1985, has been
zipping through cyberspace. She doesn't even have e-mail. "I'm as surprised
as anyone," Wells said.
Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, Calif.: Nov 22, 1998
--
Dear Bertha,
I'm reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting in the yard and admiring the
view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending more time with
my family and friends and less time working. Whenever possible, life should be
a pattern of experiences to savor, not to endure. I'm trying to recognize these
moments now and cherish them.
I'm not "saving" anything; we use our good china and crystal for every special
event such as losing a pound, getting the sink unstopped, or the first
Amaryllis blossom.
I wear my good blazer to the market My theory is if I look prosperous, I can
shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries..
I'm not saving my good perfume for special parties, but wearing it for clerks
in the hardware store and tellers at the bank.
"Someday" and "one of these days" are losing their grip on my vocabulary; if
it's worth seeing or hearing or doing, I want to see and hear and do it now.
I'm not sure what others would've done had they known they wouldn't be here for
the tomorrow that we all take for granted.
I think they would have called family members and a few close friends. They
might have called a few former friends to apologize and mend fences for past
squabbles.
I like to think they would have gone out for a Chinese dinner or for whatever
their favorite food was. I'm guessing; I'll never know.
It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I knew my
hours were limited. Angry because I hadn't written certain letters that I
intended to write one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my
husband and parents often enough how much I truly love them. I'm trying very
hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that would add laughter and
luster to our lives.
And every morning when I open my eyes, I tell myself that it is special. Every
day, every minute, every breath truly is a gift from God.
If you received this, it is because someone cares for you.
If you're too busy to take the few minutes that it takes right now to forward
this, would it be the first time you didn't do the little thing that would make
a difference in your relationships? I can tell you it certainly won't be the
last.
Take a few minutes to send this to a few people you care about, just to let
them know that you're thinking of them.
"People say true friends must always hold hands, but true friends don't need to
hold hands because they know the other hand will always be there."
I don't believe in miracles. I rely on them.
Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well
dance.
Last Tuesday, The Times profiled Ann Wells of Laguna Niguel, whose
13-year-old newspaper essay about loss and cherishing each day has been
reborn on the Internet. Wells, 76, penned the column a couple of years after
her sister unexpectedly died, and several years before she would lose her
husband.
Her work somehow made its way to the Internet, where it moves by e-mail and
chain letters, compliments of the forward button, and has been renamed "A
Story to Live By." Wells, a retired secretary and occasional freelancer, was
stunned that the essay, first published in The Times in April 1985, has been
zipping through cyberspace. She doesn't even have e-mail. "I'm as surprised
as anyone," Wells said.
Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, Calif.: Nov 22, 1998
--
Dear Bertha,
I'm reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting in the yard and admiring the
view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending more time with
my family and friends and less time working. Whenever possible, life should be
a pattern of experiences to savor, not to endure. I'm trying to recognize these
moments now and cherish them.
I'm not "saving" anything; we use our good china and crystal for every special
event such as losing a pound, getting the sink unstopped, or the first
Amaryllis blossom.
I wear my good blazer to the market My theory is if I look prosperous, I can
shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries..
I'm not saving my good perfume for special parties, but wearing it for clerks
in the hardware store and tellers at the bank.
"Someday" and "one of these days" are losing their grip on my vocabulary; if
it's worth seeing or hearing or doing, I want to see and hear and do it now.
I'm not sure what others would've done had they known they wouldn't be here for
the tomorrow that we all take for granted.
I think they would have called family members and a few close friends. They
might have called a few former friends to apologize and mend fences for past
squabbles.
I like to think they would have gone out for a Chinese dinner or for whatever
their favorite food was. I'm guessing; I'll never know.
It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I knew my
hours were limited. Angry because I hadn't written certain letters that I
intended to write one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my
husband and parents often enough how much I truly love them. I'm trying very
hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that would add laughter and
luster to our lives.
And every morning when I open my eyes, I tell myself that it is special. Every
day, every minute, every breath truly is a gift from God.
If you received this, it is because someone cares for you.
If you're too busy to take the few minutes that it takes right now to forward
this, would it be the first time you didn't do the little thing that would make
a difference in your relationships? I can tell you it certainly won't be the
last.
Take a few minutes to send this to a few people you care about, just to let
them know that you're thinking of them.
"People say true friends must always hold hands, but true friends don't need to
hold hands because they know the other hand will always be there."
I don't believe in miracles. I rely on them.
Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well
dance.
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