This American Life had its 10th Anniversary show this weekend, and they chose to replay their first show ever played in 1995 on Chicago public radio. The first story was told by an editor for Wired magazine. He spoke about his travels to Jerusalem being told (?) that he had six months to live. His future was taken from him.
He went home to see his family, and then decided to bike across the country and visit the rest of his family. The last day that he was supposed to live was 10/31. He spoke about what makes people human is that they have a past and a future. It's not completely human to only live in the present. When you have no future, you lose all sense of humanity.
When he woke up the next morning amidst his campground and tent covered with ice, he felt that he regained a future. He was reborn, reawakened. He had a new beginning. The beauty of that realization was profound - he balked as he read the words on the page.