Recently, a girl I was at school with died of cancer. I wasn’t particularly close to her, and actually haven’t even seen her in the almost 20 years since I finished school. But we were friends on Facebook so I followed her life story and enjoyed her updates as she adventured around the world and eventually settled in Sydney. She fought a long battle with the horrid disease and just when I thought she had won, I heard that she passed away.

I have realised that her death has affected me more than I expected. There is something so tragic about a person dying young. She was only in her mid-30s. It’s not right that a woman, who should be enjoying the best years of her life, is taken so soon.

She was a vibrant and happy personality and, despite all that she suffered, she always had a smile and positive attitude. After the news of her passing, her FB page was filled with posts about what a wonderful person she was and so many people shared stories and photos about her and spoke of how much they would miss her.

This really has made me wonder about my own life and what people would say about me when I died. Would there be those scores of people writing lovely posts about me on social media? What would they actually remember most about me? What significance have I contributed to society? What do I really mean to those around me? Who am I, really?

This may seem a bit melodramatic, but sometimes it’s good to question these things. Put life into perspective. Remind yourself of who you are, where you are going and what you really want out of your time on this earth. As I’ve seen more often than not recently, life is precious and we’ve only got one life to live, so make the most of it.

RIP Faith. You were an inspiration to us all!