If Tomorrow, Love Letter Inviting You To Reflect

We spend most of our life thinking that we have all the time in the world ahead of us. We believe we are immortal and we postpone everything that is not urgent. But that’s not how it works. Time passes, even if we are not always aware of it, and we must value the present, the here and now. We must learn to appreciate every little thing, every single gesture and every moment; just as the love letter If Tomorrow reminds us .

The letter is actually a literary work by the journalist Jesús Espada who won first prize in the third  Love Letter Contest  held in Cobisa, near Toledo in Spain. If tomorrow invites us not to waste the time we have and to give value to things before the years suffocate our memory. Tomorrow is already late, we may not be there anymore, tomorrow we may have already forgotten.

If tomorrow

“I am writing to you now, while you sleep, in case tomorrow I am not the one who sees the dawn rising beside you. On these round trips, I spend more and more time on the other side and on one of them, who knows? I’m afraid there will be no return.

If tomorrow I were no longer able to understand what happens to me. If tomorrow I could no longer tell you how much I admire and value your integrity, your commitment to be by my side, trying to make me happy despite everything, as always. If tomorrow I weren’t more aware of what you are doing for me. How you put the cards on each door so that it doesn’t confuse the kitchen with the bathroom; how we end up laughing if I put my shoes on without my socks; when you try to keep the conversation going even if I get lost in every sentence.

When, without being noticed, you approach to whisper the name of one of our grandchildren in my ear; when you respond with tenderness to the attacks of anger that assail me, as if something inside me rebels against the fate that has imprisoned me. For this and for many other things. If I don’t remember your name or mine tomorrow. If I couldn’t thank you tomorrow.  If tomorrow I am no longer able to tell you, even for the last time, that I love you.

Yours forever.”

Alzheimer’s and oblivion

If tomorrow speaks of a person’s fear of getting lost in oblivion, of disappearing even if still present. Losing our memory makes us forget who we are and who the people around us are. We stop being who we were, but the effects of Alzheimer’s fall mostly on the people around us.

Forgetting can be our worst enemy, since we are made of memories, experiences, of what we carry with us, of our whole life, however long or short it may be. When we lose all of this, we stop existing. For this reason, we must not wait until it is too late, we must not leave the most beautiful things at the end, nor stop loving those around us or waste the time that is dedicated to us and the seconds we spend with loved ones.

What can we do then? How can we fight what is haunting and that is getting closer and closer with each passing year? There is no magic recipe for not losing your memory, but we can slow down this process. Like? Keeping ourselves active, avoiding harmful habits, following a healthy diet and carrying out different tasks each time that stimulate our brain and push it to explore new ways.

Learn new things, have different experiences, meet new people who show you new ways of thinking and, above all, value every single moment of your life. Always be grateful for what you have, even if it may seem little to you, because, unfortunately, the day will come when you will no longer be able to do it. Before it’s too late, start remembering today.

Before it’s too late, open your eyes to the present, take your heart for a walk and value your surroundings.