That saying: “Life is so short, make sure to make every second count!” has been very topical with me, my family and friends this past week.

I am part of a triathlon group coached by Gerhard de Bruin. “DeBruinTrain”…we are a close group of friends and family and although us Krugers (me and my hubster) only joined last year August, we have been welcomed with open arms in this amazing family. Its been a year and I have been loving this group of people with all my heart…because believe me, blood, sweat and sometimes swearing with these friends make triathlon training loads better…

Its with great sadness that one of our DBT athletes, Gabriella Gioia (25) has been taken away from us in a very unfortunate car accident last week Thursday. I haven’t known Gabi for very long but in this time (we actually only got to meet her and experience her from the triathlon camps that Gerhard usually organizes in January and March before Ironman African Champs) I have never experienced a more vibrant person in my life. Wow, I was blown away… she was always smiling, always ready for some kind of adventure and fueled by coffee and love, she made her LIFE WORTH LIVING!! Everyone who encountered her would agree with me that she was a ray of sunshine, with the biggest smile and the memories that we share with her, will be forever engraved in our hearts.

Danie (hubster) and myself went out for dinner on Friday evening (we heard about Gabi’s passing on Friday morning, so our spirits were quite low and having comfort food (pizza) I thought would make up for feeling so low and quite sad – although…my husband is vegan so that pizza was extremely healthy>>>). I was actually thinking at that stage about Gabi and the life she has been living and I thought to myself…”Am I really living my life to the full, the John 10:10 way, am I actually making a difference every day or am I just one of those people living for the next best thing and not really realizing how short life is…??” I asked my husband these questions and the way that he answered also blew me away…

“We will never know what kind of difference we are making in people’s lives, or if that morning when we wake up will be our last day here on earth… the only thing that we can do everyday is get up, dress up and show up…Be kind…Be courageous and be YOU!!! You can’t dwell on the past too long, and the future no one knows what will happen, it’s the NOW that counts…”

Yes I know, this sounds like such a cliche…especially to those who have never been through terrible hardships and pain in their lives or have lost loved ones in freak accidents or just untimely deaths, but I urge you today, take a page out of Gabriella Gioia’s book and start living the life God has intended for you, make your life happen, and make each day a glorious day!! Be grateful for hardships, be excited about new adventures and stop sweating the small stuff!! Just start living, breathing and taking part in this amazing journey we all call LIFE x

Gabi, this is for you my beautiful friend…Thank you for showing me how to live my life to the full, thank you for living your life to the full, thank you for just being you!! I am missing you so much, I will see you soon…but not yet…love you x