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eptember 10, 2025, is a day that many will not soon forget. It was the day Charlie Kirk’s life was taken by a gunman. Speaking about the morning of that day, Erika Kirk “recalled the morning of the assassination, sharing how Charlie left their Arizona home early to travel to Utah.
“The night before the trip, she said she asked Charlie to sleep in their daughter’s room so he could get a good night’s rest before his event. The next morning, he woke up early and quietly left for the airport. Erika said she didn’t get the chance to give him a kiss goodbye.
“That morning he woke up super early, and he came into our bedroom, into the bathroom, because that’s where his wedding ring was and his necklace, and he came in and he grabbed that and then he left. I didn’t get to give him a kiss.”1
No fault or blame is suggested. It’s just the way things are some days as you rush about and someone has to leave earlier than necessary. Many times, I’ve gone for the day before my wife is out of bed. Occasionally, she is the one up ahead of me. You try to be as quiet as possible to let the other one get a few more precious moments of sleep.
But then something happens and you wish the day would have started differently.
This is National Say It Now Day, a day to remind us not to wait to tell others how we feel about them. How did this day come about?
“National Day Calendar began working with Legacy+ in 2024 to create National Say It Now Day to be celebrated each year on December 17. This new National Day is an opportunity to tell friends and loved ones how important they are by expressing our gratitude for all the ways they’ve impacted our lives. Legacy+ was inspired to create National Say It Now Day in honor of Walter Green, author of This Is the Moment, whose birthday is on December 17.
“According to the story, a close friend asked Walter if he would organize a celebration of life for him after he died. Walter gave it some thought, but something about the idea bothered him. If he was going to stand up and share his appreciation for everything his friend had meant to him, why wouldn’t he do it when he was still around to hear it? So, instead, Walter organized a living tribute.
“When Green turned 70, his birthday gift to himself was to travel for an entire year to visit everyone who had been important in his life. The trip became the inspiration for his first book, This is the Moment (2010). It also led Walter to launch the ‘Say It Now’ movement, which is a world-wide celebration of gratitude.”2
We know from things Erika has said that she and Charlie openly and freely spoke their love to each other. Later in the morning, she had texted “I love you” to Charlie but I’m sure she wishes that it would have been more than a text. You always wish you could say it and show it one more time.
Quite often through the years, I’ve heard people sadly confess at funerals that they never got to tell the deceased how much they meant. They wondered if they knew that they were loved and appreciated based on the actions of those who remain. The question, though, cannot be answered with certainty.
As Paul’s final days were nearing, he made sure to tell people how much they meant to him. His final letter, 2 Timothy, ended with an acknowledgement of several individuals who had been a blessing to him. The book ends in 2 Timothy 4:19-22 with these words, “Salute Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus. (20) Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick. (21) Do thy diligence to come before winter. Eubulus greeteth thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brethren. (22) The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.”
Paul wrote the book to young Timothy, who was a special person and close friend to Paul. In 2 Timothy 1:1-2, we read, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, (2) To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.” Is there any doubt that Paul loved Timothy?
Let’s rob tomorrow of regrets by doing things right starting today. You are surrounded by friends and family. Make it your mission to Say It Now. Perhaps take some time and create a checklist of people that you want to know how much they’ve meant to your life. Then, start working on that list, checking off those you encourage and adding to the list as someone comes to mind.
Say it NOW because you might not have tomorrow.
“Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: (14) Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” (James 4:13-14)
1https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/didn-t-get-to-give-him-a-kiss-erika-kirk-shares-details-of-charlie-kirk-s-last-morning-9584355
2https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/national-say-it-now-day-december-17
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