Black hair and red cheeks: for how long?
One moment, and the silver threads run through.
Open the blinds: the first apricot blossoms have opened –
Hurry! The spring days are now.

Cui Shaoxuan (dates unknown) was a Taoist in northern China. The apricot blossoms are a traditional symbol for the awakened mind. 

Be cheerful, sir:
Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and
Are melted into air, into thin air:
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capp’d towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a track behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is considered one of the greatest poets in the English language.

Many people participate in the Ash Wednesday ritual of having a cross of black ashes marked on their foreheads while hearing, “Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return.” The two poems above address this meditation.

It is easy to be caught up in the energy and activity of daily life; to forget that the fame, fortune, achievements, and possessions we value so much and work so hard for – not to mention health and youth – are just temporary and illusory. A medical crisis, accident, death of a loved one, or some major loss may remind us that our time on this earth is limited – but does it make a change in our lives?

The Lenten season offers us an opportunity to look at the fear of death directly, to evaluate the direction of our lives and to consider our contribution to others. None of us are certain when we rise in the morning that we will be here to watch the sun set. How are we living our lives? What really matters? Are we grateful for what we have? Are we living fully, deeply? And, what of love?