LIFE’S LESSONS
By Henrylito D. Tacio
“The timeless in you is aware of life’s timelessness. And knows that yesterday is but today’s memory and tomorrow is today’s dream.” – Khalil Gibran in The Prophet
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“If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain, I’d keep you out for hours in the storm. I would hold your hand, like a lifeline to my heart and underneath the thunder we’d be warm. If I had only known it was our last walk in the rain.”
Those famous lines were taken from “If I Had Only Known,” sung by Reba McEntire and was featured in the movie, 8 Seconds. The lyrics were from the pen of Jana Stanfield. “Since I didn’t know much about writing melodies yet, I took the unfinished lyrics to the most talented songwriter I knew, Craig Morris, and asked if he could craft something beautiful from my simple words,” Stanfield disclosed.
Oftentimes, there is always a story behind every song. So, why did Stanfield write the lyrics in the first place?
Story behind the song
“If I Had Only Known” was written in remembrance of Stanfield’s great-aunt Dorothy whom she considered her angel when she was 14.
The story goes this way:
In the United States, 15-year-olds can get their own driver’s license once they have successfully completed Driver’s Education. At the time, most of Stanfield’s 15-year-old friends got their driver’s license, and she was looking forward to an entire summer break, happily riding with them.
But Mr. Stanfield would not let his daughter go riding with her friends, unless their mothers drove them. Jana did not defy her father, so she simply stayed home during the summer. That is, until her great-aunt Dorothy came to her rescue. Dorothy was a bookkeeper out at Doc Stewart Chevrolet in Texas, and she asked Jana if she was interested in working with her.
Jana accepted the offer, and she worked with her grandmother and the three secretaries of the company. “Those women treated me so big,” she recalled. “Most mornings, they complimented me on my outfits, playfully saying they hated me, because I could eat three chocolate donuts for breakfast and stay skinny. They talked with me, and asked what I thought about deep stuff like destiny, religion, and politics. I learned all the important grown-up stuff, like how to curve your fingers when you reach down into a file, so you won’t drive a staple under your fingernail.”
Years passed, and Stanfield, now much older, was already living in Nashville, when she came to know that her aunt was dying of cancer. Before she died, she talked with her over the phone. “I told her how much I loved her. I thanked her for reaching out to me when I needed somebody, I thanked her for always reaching out to me when I needed somebody. I thanked her for always seeing the best in everyone she cared about. I didn’t want to hang up. I wanted to hang on. I wanted that moment to last. I wanted to stop the clock and go back to spend more time with her.”
Here’s another memorable line from the song: “If I had only known it was my last night by your side, I’d pray a miracle would stop the dawn. And when you smiled at me, I would look into your eyes and make sure you know my love for you goes on and on. If I had only known, if I had only known.”
The farewell letter of Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The song’s plaintive strains were humming in my mind, as I read the farewell letter of famed author Gabriel Garcia Marquez. He wrote the letter as his goodbye to his friends, after he was diagnosed to have terminal cancer. A few of the people who read the letter cried. Read it and contemplate:
“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. I wouldn’t possibly say everything that is in my mind, but I would be more thoughtful of all I say. I would give merit to things not for what they are worth, but for what they mean to express. 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 would walk while others stop; I would awake while others sleep.
“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.
“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. I would give wings to children, but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves. To old people I would say that death doesn’t arrive when they grow old, but with forgetfulness.
“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 and the form used to reach the top of the hill.
“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. 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.
“Say always what you feel, not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time 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. If I knew that these are the last moments to see you, I would say, ‘I love you.’
“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 and that I will never forget you.
“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.
“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,’ and all those loving words you know.
“Nobody will know you for your secret thoughts. Ask the Lord for wisdom and strength to express them. Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you. 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.” – ###
