2009 has been a year of loss, we have lost some friends, some family and some old family friends (from when I was a child so more my Mum and Dad's friends but people I knew well). Some of the people who left us this year have had long and fruitful lives, they were aged and while none of us wants to see anyone die, for some it was a relief from suffering. We also lost some friends who were our age (hubby's and my age) - one from a heart attack, one by their own hand, a cousin of mine from cancer who was not much older than us.
So each and every day, I now appreciate even more than before, for no-one knows when the time will come for us to leave this earth, I hope it is a long time from now, but just in case it is not, I take the time to smell the roses, tell people I love them and enjoy the blessings that life is giving me (of which there are many).
Never get too busy to appreciate what you have, once you have gone it is too late.