Have you seen or heard about that German grocery chain’s holiday commercial that has gone viral all over the Internet? It is definitely a very emotional commercial that will cause you to get a lump in your throat, but it also has a very powerful meaning behind it.
The commercial starts off with a senior returning to his home and listening to his voicemail. It was from his daughter, and she was calling to let him know that she and her family weren't going to be able to make it home for Christmas, once again. She promised that they would try to make it next year, and then hung up. So, with complete sadness in the man's eye, he prepares his dinner and then sits alone at the dinner table, enduring yet another lonely Christmas. It then fast forwards to many more Christmases that he spent alone.
In the next scene, his children, all busy in daily life, get the news that their father has died. One of the sons, who is on a business trip to China, starts crying and another fights to hold back tears in his job at hospital. All of the children meet at their father’s house to pay their respects, grieving and dressed in black. But to their astonishment, they find the table set for dinner and their father still alive. “How else could I have brought you all together?” he asks.
His children and grandchildren were all so happy to see that he was still alive. And he was even happier because he finally got to spend the Christmas holiday with his family.
This commercial reminds us what the holiday season should be about, and that's spending time with family. But it also goes even deeper than that. It also reminds us that time is very precious, and it's never promised, and neither is there a rewind button. There's no guarantee that you or a loved one will wake up tomorrow, so it's 100 percent true when you hear people say cherish every moment.
Sometimes us young adults and teenagers take advantage of time. We would rather text on our phones during dinner instead of talking to our loved ones and enjoying their company. We would rather watch Netflix with bae instead of enjoying a movie night at home with our loved ones, and the list goes on.
But.
We all have to keep in mind that no second, no day, or hour is promised. It's so important to not only let the people you love know that you love and care for them, but to actually show them, as well. I know that we all get busy, and we'd rather do something else besides listen to our parents repeat themselves over and over, but we should never be too busy for the people that we love. You don't want to have regrets or wish you could have done things differently when it's already too late.
So after reading this, from now on, remind yourself to hug your loved ones a little tighter, and love a little harder. Tomorrow is never promised!
Here is the video if you haven't gotten a chance to watch it yet!
