Years ago, my husband Gene gave me a beautiful china plate.

On it he had inscribed, “We are each of us angels with only one wing and we can fly only by embracing each other.”

This got me thinking about the importance of, “Me,” “You,” “Us,” in the broad scheme of life.

When I taught senior high students, I also was a counselor for them.

Drugs were a problem then and so were suicide threats. I could write a book about getting to the bottom of why these things existed to bright, young people.

So often it had to do with feeling nobody needed them or loved them. They were like angels with a missing wing.

Convincing them of their own worth was often the central key.

Have you ever heard the expression, “If only we could put the wisdom borne of years of living on the heads of young people?” Put more simply, “If only I had known then what I know now, my life would have helped more people.”

My life is crammed full of “if onlys” and “what ifs.”

We all make mistakes. I know I have.

What I realize now is each of those mistakes have molded me into the person I am today.

Maybe this is the wisdom that directs us to thank God for the bad things in life as well as the good things.

I have a confesssion. I have always struggled with this.

It started when I was three years old and I was diagnosed with Rheumatic Fever.

It has been darn near impossible to fall on my knees and thank God for my personal life-long battle with a degenerative disease.

I choke when I say “thank you” for my sweet daddy’s life ending in Alzheimer’s, which robbed him of all memory.

And can I really be thankful to have lost my soul mate to cancer? The thing is, I must.

For my own peace and serenity, I must look at what these sad situations have taught me and how I can turn each one into beautiful memories and strength.

It now seems to me our own collection of memories, both good and bad, is the very thing that can separate those who can dip into their collection and be sustained by it and those who have never seen the value in it and its use in giving hope and joy to others.

This brings me to what I have learned in my 87 years, which is how important relationships are. The very word sends me soaring to understand what it really means.

There are many kinds of relationships, and since relationships are really what life is all about, we need to try to understand them better.

The first relationship is our connection with God.

Sometimes it takes years to relate to one’s creator. To do this, we must have a relationship with ourselves. This includes asking how we take care of our body. Other questions to explore are: Who am I? Why am I even here? What is my purpose?

Early on we must also know the importance of relationships with other people — remember the other wing?

Then there are relationships with other species and how to learn from them. The same goes for our relationship with all of nature.

I believe relationships and being a part of the universe is all there is in the end. Then wherein is the life lesson for us? For me? For you?

Our goal, it seems, is to understand our critical slot in the circle of life.

Without each of us, there’s a hole, a weak link and God’s plan is weakened.

Those of us who feel useless and out of the circle will feel despair. Never again should I or you believe we are alone and not needed.

Maybe we should tell ourselves everyday when we look in the mirror, “I finally get it. I understand the essence of relationship and my part in it.”

Each of us are angels with only one wing and we can fly only by embracing each other.

The view from the mountain is wondrous.

Jean Brody is a passionate animal lover and mother. She previously lived in Winchester, but now resides in Littleton, Colorado. Her column has appeared in the Sun for more than 25 years.