Welcome to 5 O’Clock Reflections, a daily blog by Hemant Rustogi as he explores lessons learned in life, business, and his quest for wisdom. Each month Hemant invites a person who intrigues him, to join him for a 5 pm interview to share their insights over their favorite cocktail. You can learn more here.

Happy Birthday Sis

She would have been sixty six years old today. She left us way too early. The “firsts” are probably the hardest. Today was her “first“ birthday not being with us on this earth. 

I wondered if it was worth celebrating a birthday when she was no longer with us. The answer was an emphatic YES. It was a hard day but we needed to celebrate her impact on so many lives.  To me she was an older sister who called it as she saw it. Never one to mince her words, she was honest to a fault. I miss that voice of reason in my life. 

There will be a lot of hard days ahead, but today I celebrate her love and her impact on my life. I guess it’s ok for the tears to flow freely. It’s the price we pay for love. 

Great Advice

Great advice from a good buddy who doesn’t drink, and lives the chilled retired life: 

“Live life to excess. 
Moderation is meant for monks.”

-David Harbaugh 

The Bird Cage

The cage sits empty today, as it did for the last four years in Ranjana’s living room. In reality, to her it was never really empty. The cage represented the cancer that had trapped her in a place she did not want to be with a set of circumstances … [Continue reading]

In Search of Comfort

The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not ‘get over’ the loss of a loved one; you’ll learn to live with it. You will heal and you will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be … [Continue reading]