A Farewell Letter

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a famous writer from Columbia and Nobel Peace prize winner for literature, has retired from public life for reasons of health. He has a form of cancer which is terminal. He has sent a farewell letter to his friends and it has been circulated around the Internet.

He says:

If God, for a second, forgot what I have become and granted me a little bit more of life, I would use it to the best of my ability.
--this is highly recommended by teachers, managers, supervisors, and other who-nots, who sometimes promise people or themselves that if given such and such, they would use it to the best of their abilities. but this realization, i think, butts in late in life; especially when you're aware that you're losing it.



I wouldn't, possibly, say everything that is in my mind, but I would be more thoughtful of all I say.
-- this is fairly hard to do, especially if you're like me, who sometimes act/talk on impulse...i sometimes regret having to have opened my mouth on some occasions, on only very few are capable of holding back especially when overcome with emotion... at least now i'm trying...

I would give merit to things not for what they are worth, but for what they mean to express.
--oh, i think this applies more to gift giving... :D

I would sleep little, I would dream more, because I know that for every minute that we close our eyes, we waste 60 seconds of light.
--i can't do this, i just love sleeping.

I would walk while others stop; I would awake while others sleep.
-- this really shouldn't be taken literally or else you'd be known as the nocturnal homo sapien...

If God would give me a little bit more of life, I would dress in a simple manner, I would place myself in front of the sun, leaving not only my body, but my soul naked at its mercy.
-- not being too flashy, just keep it simple. be yourself, and not try to be the people you idolize... because if you were meant to be like them, you should've been them, right? being simple in everything, moderation i think is the key word... false modesty destroys also, as is being flashy...simplicity will leave very little or no room for detractors.

To all men I would say how mistaken they are when they think that they stop falling in love when they grow old, without knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love.
---ah, the age-old adage, "age doesn't matter."

I would give wings to children, but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves.
-- yeah, true enough..provide them with the resources, show them how to live their lives, but don't live it for them... let them find their own way, correct them if they make mistakes, explain and let them understand, let them be independent, but not irrational; logical, but not cold...in the end, you're actually helping them prepare for a life of their own.

To old people I would say that death doesn't arrive when they grow old, but with forgetfulness.
--forgetting things, moments, events, etc... memories are the best things you can bring with you anywhere, and whether fond or ugly memories, they let you know that at that point in your life, you lived.

I have learned so much with you all, I have learned that everybody wants to live on top of the mountain, without knowing that true happiness is obtained in the journey taken & the form used to reach the top of the hill.
--amen. means do not always justify the end. sometimes the journey to go there is more lesson-laden than the goal itself.

I have learned that when a newborn baby holds, with its little hand, his father's finger, it has trapped him for the rest of his life.
--almost everybody has at one point or another attested to this, that being in the presence of a new-born is always therapy...always enlightens the darkest of faces, lightens every burden, forgives every shortcoming.

I have learned that a man has the right and obligation to look down at another man, only when that man needs help to get up from the ground.
--in simple negative words, do not look down at other people...you're not the best of everything.

Say always what you feel, not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time that that I am going to see you asleep, I would hug you with all my strength and I would pray to the Lord to let me be the guardian angel of your soul.
-- saying what you feel instead of what you think, i think, means that whatever you say, you should think twice over, and then determine whether you FEEL that after saying that, you'd be ok and not feel guilty or irked or bothered or something. Say how you feel towards other people, do not think how they'd perceive you afterwards. The thing is, they might even think you were man enough to go up to them and tell them the truth they never knew.

If I knew that these are the last moments to see you, I would say 'I love you'.
-- regrets always come at the end of the road.

There is always tomorrow, and life gives us another opportunity to do things right, but in case I am wrong, and today is all that is left to me, I would love to tell you how much I love you & that I will never forget you.
-- see above. :)

Tomorrow is never guaranteed to anyone, young or old. Today could be the last time to see your loved ones, which is why you mustn't wait; do it today, in case tomorrow never arrives. I am sure you will be sorry you wasted the opportunity today to give a smile, a hug, a kiss, and that you
were too busy to grant them their last wish.
--same thing, although longer and more wordy.

Keep your loved ones near you; tell them in their ears and to their faces how much you need them and love them. Love them and treat them well; take your time to tell them 'I am sorry'; 'forgive me', 'please', 'thank you'.
-- again, it is emphasized, that you shouldn't wait until your last breath to let people know how you feel about them. as long as you have the strength, the words, and the actions to let them know, then do it.

Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you.
-- never simplier said.

Send this letter to those you love. If you don't do it today...tomorrow will be like yesterday, and if you never do it, it doesn't matter either, the moment to do it is now.
--- that's why i posted this... :)