The stories of people who have survived a deadly disease or disaster often tell that their attitude toward life changed: that they are now more happy with living, less interested in things and more interested in people, sometimes more courageous, and so on. For them, something about the nearness of death gave them a better outlook on life. You might expect the contrary--that they'd be more fearful--and some do react that way. Thinking about death doesn't seem the most intuitive approach to enjoying life, but perhaps the old teacher was telling us that that's the way we work.
The specter of death is what gives life its vitality. The very brevity of life, and the fact that you only get this one shot, it what makes it meaningful. Suppose you lived to be four hundred. Would you hop on a motorcycle with your honey and tour the Rockies? Heck no, you might get in a wreck and die.
ReplyDeleteWhich is kind of my attitude about motorcycle trips right now. Two wheels bad, four wheels good.
ReplyDeleteBut if I understand the teacher, and the near-death folks, it isn't just a matter of the brevity but the contrast.