Life's one certainty...

There is only one thing is life that is certain to happen and that’s death. No one has learned to escape death and why would you want to even if you can. Everyone you love will perish and live you to your lonesome. It’s like that scene from the Lord of the Rings, where the Elf Princess is in love with the knight and she has a vision of their life together. He dies, she lives, she’s sad because she outlives him and all their children. Who wants to be alive when everything you love isn’t? I suppose you could say that you’ll find new people to love but who would want to go through the pain and agony of losing loved ones over and over again?

Why do I bring up the certainty of death? Well, because someone asked me the following question: “If you could choose how you die, what three ways would you choose?” Despite being morbid, this question was very thought provoking. Out of the infinite ways one can pass from living to non-living, how would I choose to do it? Before I tell you the three ways I chose let talk about the reason behind such a morbid question. Keep in mind that this question was asked as a conversation starter, over wine, between a few people. The conversation it sparked was beyond interesting. You got a glimpse into how people think and how they live or want to live their lives. Most people want to die as they lived or die in a manner totally opposite of how they lived. On the other side when people question or challenge your choices reveal a lot about what they value.

So my three ways…


Quietly in my sleep at an old age: What does this say about me? It could say different things. But what I think and what others thought when I said it was that I’m a boring person or I choose to live life obscurely, not making a wave. Dying of old age in a quiet manner reminds me of the novel, The Giver, where when you reach a certain age you go into a room (thinking you’re going to a great place) and they inject you and you quietly die. Disappearing from the community, becoming a faint memory, and eventually it’s like you never existed.


Execution style (single bullet in the back of the head):  This is like the epitome of death.  You know it is coming but it still catches you by surprise and before you realize what just happened, boom, you're dead.  This method is dependent upon doing something that warrants it.  So you have to think what did she do to deserve being shot in the head.  It brings a little dangerous to me.

During childbirth:  The ultimate sacrifice.   A life for a life.  I don't have children now but I am looking forward to the day when I do have children.  I believe that part of the reason I am who I am is to bring forth life (with the help of a man, of course).  This method caused a lot of talk.  I'm not saying that I would to die, I'm saying that if the choice was there- my life or my child's life, I would give my life for that of my child.

So there it is, my three choices.  What are yours and why?  Although death is certain, we don't know when it will come, so live in the moment.  There have been times when I got stuck just existing as oppose to living and enjoying life. After watching the movie Up (one of the deepest animated movies I've ever seen) I fully intend to fill my memory (memory book in the movie but I'm not much for scrap booking, maybe one day) with adventures.  From the extreme to the mundane.

Signed,
We're living dangerously (like Barrington Levy)