Randy Pausch and Mattie Stepanek

You may not have heard about Mattie Stepanek if you didn't watch Oprah at some point in 2003-2004, and you may not have heard about Randy Pausch, either. But having heard of both of them and remembering their stories always brings me back to reality - a life goal I often forget, sometimes ignore, and the rest of the time, try to live: To Have My Life Be An Inspiration To Others. Both of them passed on: Mattie in 2004, just shy of 14, from a rare form of muscular dystrophy; Randy today, at 47, from an incurable form of pancreatic cancer.

I'm writing about these two inspirations because we often forget that we are all here on the verge of death, and yet it seems we never actually choose life. "When I get some time" just keeps getting pushed away until time just decides to strike back. And then we're gone.

If nothing else can be learned from these two souls, just remember this: Right now is the only time you know you definitely have - everything else is an uncertainty.

So excuse me while I get back to it.