I don’t want to be a drag, but I’ve spent most of my time over the past few months thinking about a close friend – my age – who is dying. Oddly, as you may know if you’ve had this kind of experience, once you’ve accepted a loved one’s passing there is almost as much awe and wonder in the process of making this inevitable transition as there is fear and sorrow.

As we begin 2011, the brevity of life is especially clear to me, and because of this I am more committed than ever to really living every moment [...]