What Matters Most…                         Commentary by Jim High

Death

I read a friend’s obituary a few weeks ago.  He died too early.  We are all going to die someday, but everyone hopes they will live a long and full life.  When I think of all the young people who die before they even get to be adults, I wonder what they would have become, what they would have done with their lives.  Death is the ultimate question mark for all of us.  We are aware, we think, we create, we imagine.  What happens when we die is the one thing that we don’t understand, and will never understand.  It is probably the only thing that we ultimately will never know.  What happens after we die is the one thing that science will never figure out.

I think it was the fear of death that caused man to believe in some higher, greater power than himself.  This fear created the many Gods of ancient history that have become today’s single universal God.  But is death really to be feared?  Does a tree fear death, rot and decay?  No, a tree comes forth from a seed and grows to maturity and old age, if it is lucky.  And along the way provides all sorts of things that benefit the world - oxygen for the planet, shade, a tree house for kids, home for the birds, or lumber for a house or furniture.  The point of a tree is that it lives, and provides what it can for everyone that it can.

Death is not to be feared.  And people will no longer fear death, if they come to understand that their purpose is to live with all the fullness of life that they can muster.  We don’t get any promises for anything in our lives, and I think that most know and understand this.  But we also have no real understanding of life after our life on this earth is over.  We should all accept the fact that we must live and live well, care for others, for our environment, our family, our close friends and all the people of the world.  Live your life fully and full of love for everyone and everything.

My friend lived a good life, a full life, a life full of love.  He will be missed, just as we miss the old oak tree that we use to play in, sit under and maybe even used to make something of tangible value that lives on beyond the life of that single tree.  My friend’s life and his memory will live on in the lives of all of us that knew him.

What matters most is for us to understand this life doesn’t depend on the next life or even if there is a next life.  Our thoughts now and our actions here in this life matter a great deal.  We live in a paradise and we create our own reality every day.  Yes, I believe that there is a force for good behind the Universe, and that there was a beginning some 14 billion years ago.  But our time is now.  Live with your heart and mind always guided by love, and if death is the end you won’t even know it is the end.  But, if there is some afterlife, as many believe, let it be a bonus for the good life you had during your time in this life on this earth.  And you will never again be afraid of death.

                                                                        © 2008 #4 Jim High can be reached at P. O. Box 467, Tupelo, MS  38802-0467