Defining Moments

There are defining moments in our lives that remain at the forefront of our minds no matter how many memories there are vying for space. They are moments when everything stops..stands still while we fly past only to crash into the windshield of reality, as we realize that life goes on in spite of the complete pain or happiness that has gripped us. In that one moment, we are changed forever.Tonight, as I beg God for sleep that refuses to come, I close my eyes tightly and strain to see around the defining moment that brought my life to a halt today. I can’t see past it now because it is too big, swollen from emotion and tears. I know that with the light of a new day there will be confirmation that everything will be okay. The rest of my life will appear on the edges of this moment, shining around it and radiating its beauty as objects on the horizon when the sun rises on a new day. However, that which keeps me awake tonight will always remain larger than the memories that surround it. It, along with all of the defining moments in my life, will always stand out as the chapter titles in a novel. All of the pages of words are essential to the life of a book, but as one flips through them, they are a blur as the eye gravitates to these defining chapter titles.They seem larger than life, but we must remember that they cannot stand alone. They are only explained and given purpose by the life that follows them.