If I should die before I wake ...

I was raised on the "Now I lay me down to sleep" prayer. When I learned it, the phrase, "If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take" was part of the prayer. I vaguely remember hearing that some folks raised objections to having that in the prayer because it may create emotional scars in the children or some such as that. I guess it might, but it also presents a realistic understanding of the human condition. Regardless of what age we are, we are dying. I think I could argue that humans begin the aging process and, thus, the dying process, at the moment of birth.

Within the last few weeks, the Carnegie-Mellon professor, Randy Pausch - he who was widely, and justifiably celebrated for "The Last Lecture" given at CMU - died from pancreatic cancer. While many others have suggested that a person should always live as if they only had a brief time left on this mortal plain, there was something about Pausch's lecture that captured the imagination of all who heard it or read it.

On BeliefNet, http://blog.beliefnet.com/beyondblue/2008/08/10-things-i-would-change-if-i.html, Therese J. Borchard has a blog entitled Beyond Blue. She asked what things would you change if you knew you were going to die. Here is her list:
1. I would stress less about the small stuff.
2. I would categorize everything as small stuff.
3. I would worry less about people's approval.
4. I would make more time for coffee and phone calls with friends.
5. I would visit my mom and my sisters more.
6. I would eat more dessert and not care as much about the widening waist line.
7. I would laugh more.
8. I would publish my journal online--every thought I have, no matter how stupid or insane. Oh wait, I already do that.
9. I would spend more time outdoors.
10. I would eat breakfast with my kids, lunch with Eric, and dinner with my family.

As I thought about her list, I did as I always do and wondered about: "How much time would I have to do the things?" "Would I have enough money on which to live and to do what I want to do?" "Would there be specific actions I would take; if so, what are they?" Of course, I think my questions probably fall outside the spirit of her question, but these details would make a difference in what I might do. With all of these caveats, let me indulge in a list - subject to change, of course and not in order of priority:
1. I would try to talk to all of the people who made a positive difference in my life and thank them.
2. I would start working my way through the 100 greatest books of all time.
3. I would spend more evenings watching classic comedies with Vicki and laughing as much as I could.
4. I would tell my boys how proud I am of them - I actually do this, but not often enough.
5. I would start conversations with people I see in book stores.
6. I would gather a group of folks with whom I could talk about current issues and struggle with classic human questions.
7. I would begin learning to speak another language.
8. I would purchase land on which I could plant things.
9. I would try to find all the people who I failed and thank them for their patience with me.
10. I would spend more time doing all the things that Vicki likes and I don't just to see her enjoy the moment.

Should you make such a list, what would you do differently if you were told you would soon die?