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By Doug Collins

ONE MAN'S OPINION

COLLINS: Is life really like a box of chocolates?

Dec 21, 2025 | 6:00 AM

NORMALLY ON A DAY LIKE TODAY, the last Sunday before Christmas, I would be relaxing in my chair, maybe in front of a fire, counting the good things that happened over the year, saying a prayer for those less fortunate, and then sitting down to a scrumptious dinner.

But the past couple of years, the quote from Forrest Gump has made me realize just how topsy-turvy life can be. “Life is like a box of chocolates.” You put your hand in and you pull one out.  But every time you pull out a chocolate, you have no idea what it will taste like, and if you compare it to a stream in your life, no idea where it will lead. You made the draw, now it’s up to you to make the most of it.

And that requires a lot of determination. I did not expect to be spending this year as my second straight year in a hospital bed unable to walk, nor to watch one of my closest friends pass away suddenly from a rapidly onset cancer. Or to find myself facing two simple procedures which turned into life-and-death experiences.

We had many blessings, too. And sometimes they get forgotten.

The point is that we don’t know what’s around the next corner, and whatever it is, it’s ours to own, good or bad. Ours to build up or tear down. It’s a challenge for sure, whether we push the positive, as Forrest did, or let the negative drag us down. It’s our chocolate, and what we do with it is up to us.

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I’m Doug Collins and that’s One Man’s Opinion.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.