You Can Ride A Horse

Several months ago, my dad suffered a major heart attack.  The doctors said that his heart valves were leaking and he would not survive a surgery to repair them.  He might live a week, month or maybe even a year....but there was no hope for recovery.  Basically, he was a dead man walking.
Dad spent a month in the hospital but he really wanted to go back to his beloved home.  He seemed to be doing better.  He could get out of bed and walk with assistance.  He was eating well and said that he was not feeling any pain.  Unfortunately, he was plagued with shortness of breath and oxygen hunger.
The decision was made for Dad to go home and my mother would take care of him with the help of a Hospice nurse.  He would get up each morning and get dressed.  Some days were better than others but he was very happy to be home.  He was striving to resume his normal routine and that included going into town and have coffee each morning with his friends. 
One day Dad asked the Hospice nurse, "Can I go to the coffee shop"? 
The nurse replied, "You can do anything you feel like doing.  You can ride a horse if you want to!"
This made Dad feel very happy.  Even though he knew what the doctors said, he thought that he must be getting better if he could ride a horse.  Of course, he had no desire to ride a horse but he did enjoy joining his friends for coffee for the last couple of weeks of his life. 
On the day that he died, my mother drove Dad into town to get a hair cut and then they attended the Rotary luncheon.  He spent his last days living life to the fullest and doing exactly what he wanted to do.
I like to think that Dad rode a horse into heaven to meet his Lord on that October evening. 
We should live each day to the fullest.  We don't know how much time we have left so we should spend our time wisely.  Don't wait to live your dreams.  You can ride a horse today!