Death as a Teacher

Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash

The fear of death has popped up for me again, possibly because I am taking a long trip to places I’ve not been before.

Depending on your age, you’re probably familiar with the death fears, or in my case, more the pre-death fears. Will I be debilitated, get dementia, be alone, isolated, will it be painful, cold, dark, etc. etc.

Those fears are always available when I want to indulge in them.

But today, I thought about the opposite--what about the gifts of death? Especially the primary one—the realization that time is finite.

Should I finish this book, even though I don’t like it? Should I do this activity, even though I don’t enjoy it as much now? Should I hang with these people I don’t connect with anymore? No, no and no.

Should I procrastinate writing this new book that’s tugging at me?

Emphatically, no.

Are you procrastinating your art? Maybe you could check in with our friend, Death, to see if it can help you realize that time is indeed, finite.

Your work is important. Time to do it.