I read something recently that reminded me of what really matters in this world of ours, where we get taken over by tasks and things we need to do. It was the question: ‘If you discovered that you only had an hour left to live, what would you do?’

Stop and think for a moment. You wouldn’t tidy up, or complain about the state of the world, or hurry to get to work, would you? I believe, as did the author, that we would all want to be with loved ones, or at least call them, and tell them that we love them.

It reminds us of what really matters above all else – loving and being loved.

Yet how often do we express that in our everyday lives? We are so busy getting on with life that we take it for granted that others know that we love them.

It can seem a bit soppy, even formulaic, to say “I love you’ or to give someone a hug. And sometimes they are causing us temporary irritation and that shows more than the fundamental love we feel towards them.

Hope fully we all have more than an hour to live, but that is no excuse for not bothering to say that you love someone, or not stopping to give them a hug. Both of you will feel that deep connection that underlies everything else, and have a moment of remembering what really matters.

So hug them today and tell them that you love them, and do it again and again. Then you will know, when you do reach the end of your life, that you have shown your love over and over.