The Certainty of Death

Life. Death. Two words--or rather, concepts--around which our existence revolves. We never were, and then we come to life, and then we die once more. And in between coming to life and dying; we breathe, drink, eat, laugh, cry, love, hate, live; forgetting that one day, it will all come to an end, and then what will we have to show for that time spent doing whatever it was we were doing?

The certainty of death is something earth-shattering. In the usual way of humans, we tend to put off that thought the way we tend to put off a lot of things. Tomorrow, I'll get the work I've been meaning to do for a week done. Tomorrow, I'll call that friend who called me a year ago and whom I still haven't called back. Tomorrow, I'll get closer to God. Tomorrow, I'll meditate and think of my life and where it's headed. Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. We lay so much on our tomorrow to unburden our today, which when you look at it, is utter foolishness since we can never be sure that tomorrow will indeed come.

I can die at any given moment. Death could come right now; or it could be moments, hours, days, weeks, months, years away. The truth is, it will come. One day, it will come. And how am I to know that years from now, I won't still be putting off everything I want to do? I do not trust myself to the extent where I can confidently say that if I delay the act of becoming a better person to a certain date, then when that date comes and I am still alive, I will live up to my word.

The simple truth? Death is imminent. Humans are foolish. Perhaps the secret of life is death. Perhaps the only way to have a fruitful life is to constantly remind yourself that one day, like the rest of God's creatures, you shall perish.