# Hiking Through ![rw-book-cover](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51w7BQKuKhL._SL200_.jpg) ## Metadata - Author: [[Paul Stutzman]] - Full Title: Hiking Through - Category: #books ## Highlights - One of the first lessons in Grief 101 is a caution against making any big, life-changing decisions for at least one year. That includes buying or selling ([Location 214](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=214)) - your home, quitting or changing jobs, or getting remarried. Making major choices while your emotions are all jumbled up and you’re unable to think clearly is opening the door to disaster. ([Location 215](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=215)) - Mary and I had always thought we would work hard, get out of debt, retire early, and then enjoy doing some mission project to benefit others. In May of 2006, I made our last house payment. I took the envelope with the final payment to the hospital where Mary lay. “This is it, Mary. No more debt.” “That’s wonderful!” she replied. Wonderful, indeed, but what price had we paid? Within four months, my wife was dead. All those things we were going to do together were now impossible. We had spent a lifetime working toward that distant goal, making promises to ourselves that now we could never fulfill. Sure, it’s important to plan for the future, but think about this: You’ve had the gift of yesterday and you are living today with its choices and opportunities, but who knows if you will have tomorrow? You’ve heard it time and again, but I will tell you—and I know it’s true, because the painful lesson is etched into my yesterday—no one has a guarantee of tomorrow. ([Location 268](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=268)) - I’m at the age where I read obituaries. Beyond checking to see who is gone, I find the content of obituaries fascinating. What did people accomplish in their allotted years? What was important in their lives? Those long lists of organizations and activities—are people truly living, or just filling their schedules? ([Location 290](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=290)) - Would you give up your job if you knew I wanted you to? ([Location 298](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=298)) - Don’t take your spouse and family for granted. Enjoy today fully. Don’t assume you have tomorrow to tell your loved ones what they mean to you. ([Location 301](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0073UNAN4&location=301))