A friend reminded me of the racquetball racquet which had this message on the handle: 

DUE TO THE NATURE OF THE GAME THIS PRODUCT CAN NOT BE GUARANTEED. 

Many people feel that way about life.  Due to the nature of life, nothing is guaranteed.  The gloomy day in October when the stock market went tumbling down told us something about the tentative nature of investments.  Months of drought gave witness to farmers, especially about the fickleness of nature.  The ominous word of the doctor: "cancer.  Only a few months to live" is shocking evidence of how vulnerable we are.  But there must be something that is unconditionally guaranteed.  The rewards of unselfishness live forever.  We learn that we keep what we give away.  We keep the knowledge that we have contributed to the life of another.  We keep the feeling that our little has meant more by giving it had we kept it. Unselfishness lasts forever. There are other things as well. Finding those things that abide: faith, hope, and love.