A Very Appropriate Song

I love my Dad. His end came too soon. He loved life, and his family...I have been trying to put a tribute to him up on this blog for a while...I think I'm ready.

Please read on:

I came across this song when my wife was driving one day. See, she gets to pick the radio station when she drives - she ALWAYS chooses country music. Ugh!

Anyhow, this song came on, and it really hit me hard. It was so appropriate to what my dad tried to do the last 4 years of battling the cancer inside him. He never gave up. Unfortunately, neither did his cancer.

If you're familar with country music, there's no doubt you've heard it. It’s a song by Tim McGraw. Kristin apparently thinks he's a pretty good singer. Most of you who know me know that I'm not particularly fond of country music. However, this song has some very touching lyrics...I get emotional when I hear it.

I hope Mr. McGraw doesn't mind, but I changed some of the lyrics to make the song more of a memorial to my Dad.

It's called Live Like You Were Dying:

you can find the actual lyrics here ==> http://www.dapslyrics.com/display.php?sid=6116

Here's my version:

He said: "I was in my mid fifties,
"With a lot of life before me,"
An' a moment came that stopped me on a dime.
"I spent most of the next days,
"Looking at the x-rays,"
An' talking 'bout the options an' talkin’ ‘bout "sweet time."
I asked him when it sank in,
That this might really be the real end?
How’s it hit you when you get that kind of news?
Dad whatcha do?
And he said,

"I played hoops daily,
Even went parasailing
I was the Salt Lake Savages in a Fantasy Football League
I went Hot Air balloon flyin’
Loved the rush of Alpine Slidin'
Played board games when I could have been cryin’
An' he said: Someday, I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'."


He said, "I was finally the husband,"
That most the time I wasn’t.
"An' I became a friend a friend would like to have.
"And all of a sudden goin' golfin’,
"Was somethin’ I did more often,
"And I went even when my son was in from Cleve-land.
"Although I never read the Good Book,
"I took a good long hard look,
"At what I'd do, if I could do it all again,
"And then:

"I strived to plan the best vacations
Traveled to more than 40 nations,
But I had to have my Starbucks each day after lunch
And I loved card games, hated the Queen of Spades
But games like Taboo or Flinch made me start whining
An' he said: "Some day, I hope you get the chance,
"To live like you were dyin'."


Like tomorrow was a gift,
And you got eternity,
To think about what you’d do with it.
An' what did you do with it?
An' what can I do with it?
An' what would I do with it?


"Tennis in Hawaii, flew all the way to China,
"I wrote 8 editions of a textbook that kept on getting finer.
"And then I loved deeper and I spoke sweeter,
"And I watched my kids as they kept on tryin'.
"An' he said: "Some day, I hope you get the chance,
"To live like you were dyin'."


"To live like you were dyin'."
"To live like you were dyin'."
"To live like you were dyin'."
"To live like you were dyin'."


I miss you Dad. I love you, Dad...........