Henry David Thoreau said, “If thou art a writer, write as if thy time is short, for it is indeed short at the longest.”

You could put anything in that sentence and it would still ring true.

If thou art a builder, build as if thy time is short….

If thou art a teacher….

If thou art a baker…

If thou art a speed skater.

Last night, an Olympic athlete won a gold medal by 3/1000ths of a second.  How do you split a second into one thousand little pieces?  To someone flying around a track made out of ice at a ridiculous speed, I suppose that’s a plausible concept.  In order for my mind to grasp what that minuscule moment is like, I need to zoom out.

If I live to be 80 years old, I will have a total of 29,200 days to race around this planet.

3/1000ths of 29,200 is 87.6.  In other words, 87 days is my 3/1000ths.

If I live to be 80 years old, I have about 9,490 days left.

3/1000ths of 9,490 is 28.

Life is indeed short, even at the longest.

Psalm 90 carries the subtitle “A prayer of Moses the man of God.”

He wrote, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

I just numbered my days.

Now for a heart of wisdom.