When David Letterman asked how he was coping with his cancer diagnosis, Warren Zevon said that everything had become “more valuable.” He said you learn to “enjoy every sandwich.”

Having recently attended two separate memorial services, just days apart, both for women who died much too young and from unkind conditions (one, ALS, the other, cancer) … this hits me as sound advice.

We forget to, don’t we? We forget how amazing ordinary things are: walks, sunsets, music, health, family, friends … and sandwiches.

One of my daily mantras, upon waking up, is “I get to be alive today.”

One day, that will not be so.

Could be decades away.

Could be, that I won’t see tomorrow’s sunrise.

We don’t know.

This breath, this heartbeat—they are the great gifts. They are impermanent.

Notice them. Live in gratitude for them.

Love yourself. Love others. Love your life, with all its ups and downs.

Enjoy every sandwich. Add pepper jack and mayo, if you like.

That’s what I got.

JRW