No guarantees

I had occasion to once again ponder the meaning of life this past week. I'm certain none of you do that, but with the passing of several of my former acquaintances, I have been reflecting and deflecting some thoughts that mostly come to me just as I fall asleep -- which isn't very often these days. It seems as though the older I get, the harder it is to sleep. Why is that? No, that's for another blog entry.
So, here is the result of my pondering on the meaning of life. Our goal should be to try to get out of this life alive. Of course, that's impossible, after all as cousin Mark so aptly put it in his film, "Baby Boomerang," even the people Jesus healed and brought back to life eventually died. But, still I think our purpose in life is to try to be alive.
I've contrasted the lives of several different people who I have known that recently died. One was exceedingly wealthy in both temporal and spiritual means. He was a great benefactor and extremely generous along with a great family man. By all that we measure a person by he was an outstanding individual, so much so they had to hold his funeral in 3 different stake centers and broadcast the proceedings to 2 of them.
Then there was another man who tried his best in life. By all accounts he too was a good family man and while not wealthy he worked hard at his career choice and provided for his family. Unfortunately, his wife ran off with another man and took his children. Who knows why? Maybe he had it coming, maybe he didn't. The company he worked for left the town he lived in and he had to bounce around to other jobs, etc. He tried to stay active in his religion for many years. He held callings, he did church service but eventually he lost his faith to a degree and pretty much gave up. I only mention his circumstances because he was someone who had a positive effect on my life. He appeared to really try and do what was right, but for reasons unknown to me, his life just didn't go the way I thought it would and he probably thought it would.
He didn't have a funeral -- only a memorial service. His former wife wasn't there, although several of his children were. He never remarried, though he found a companion later in his life. For a few weeks after his death, I couldn't even find an obituary about him anywhere. Finally, someone had one printed in a local newspaper that I could read. That really made me happy.
Now the truth is, I really don't know why the lives of these two men were so different. Maybe we get what deserve in life and one deserved the "great life" and one deserved the "not so great life". I honestly don't know. But this much I do know, and I don't mean to sound callous, they are both dead. Their earthly journey is finished. In fact, both died the same way of the same ailment.
One had it all and will be remembered as a great individual. One appeared to have a great life and then it just wafted away, much like a torn apart cattail in the wind.
So, what is my conclusion? There are no guarantees in life, that's what. I know we are taught that the family that prays together stays together, that if you hold family home evening your children will not go astray, that if you read the scriptures daily you will have family harmony, that if pay your tithing you will have your temporal needs taken care of, that if you do this, you will get that, ya da ya da ya da. I know that these things help to insulate us from dangers and temptations, etc. I do believe all that, but I also know that when it rains it brings both roses and mud and that it rains on both the just and the unjust. People are people and because we are just that, we make mistakes, our children make mistakes, people get sick and die sometimes with cause -- sometimes without cause, there is war and injustice in the world and as Uncle Cliff says, "life is a photo finish".
Life is like buying a new car. When you choose the car you want it comes with a warranty not a guarantee. There is a big difference. There is no guarantee that the car will not ever break down. In fact, that's why the car manufacturers offer a warranty. They know it will. When it does need to be fixed, they will fix it for free. That's the beauty of the warranty. You can also buy an extended warranty.
So, what does this have to do with the meaning of life? We have no guarantees. In fact, the Lord knows that parts of our lives will break down and need to be fixed. It's part of the contract we entered into. The great thing is, He has provided us with a free extended warranty. He will fix what ails us, free of charge for as long as we need it. There is only one caveat, we have to take ourselves to Him to receive the fixing. If my new car broke down and I decided I didn't want to have it fixed for free under the terms of the warranty, then that's my problem and I'm an idiot.
So, I've decided I'm going to check my warrantee again and see what the terms are. That's how I'm gonna get out of this life alive and at the same time try to be alive during this life.