Death in today, tomorrow and the next.
Today started out pretty great- until it wasn’t. The day was bright and sunny up untill 3pm when my favorite topic crept it’s way into my heart. I say favorite topic because over the months i have come to see death as the means to a beginning rather than an end. The pinyata to the candy, the meal before the dessert and ultimately what all of humanity has in common.
Loss can be a really touchy topic especially when it’s in the third person. You feel bad but not necessarily sad cause you didn’t know the person well or even at all. You’re at a loss for words and just like me, do not know what on earth to say to a grieving person. But of course i have learned that comfort can come from silence.
Fast track to when it’s someone you do know, then it’s a whole different ball game:The loss hits home and you feel tragic about life and death in itself. You cry your eyes out because it’s the only way to express whatever you might be feeling. We resent the world because someone we love has left us and will never be back( except you believe in re- incarnation, which would be great but clumsy, no?)
But what if you and i could see death as an ‘okay thing’? What if we come to appreciate the transition of life of a few decades to the unknown of eternity? It becomes the gift of death rather than plain old dying- the Bible takes it futher into ‘Eternal life’ but that’s a topic for some other day.
I once saw this documentary about a 40-year-old woman with breast cancer smile at her funeral/ going away party. She had the brightest smile on her face but still mixed with sadness. She was apparently sad about dying, but since it was inevitable, she was going to take it like a champ. She was going to live her last few days in “ love and compassion”.
A 30-year-old embalmer says she’s not scared of the dead(yes, I watched a documentary on the ‘day in the life of an emblalmer’. Cleaning and caring for the dead gave her a new perspective on not just death, but also life.
Thinking and reminding ourselves that we are not of this world prepares us to leave it all behind. Helps us to treat people kinder and with respect. Every life is precious, but so is every death. So as you go to bed tonight, let go of that grudge, forgive, ask to be forgiven, set your heart and mind right with God and most importantly, drink some water💦.
To everyone who has lost someone today, I pray you have the strength to think of the Joy and gift of life, get clarity and peace of mind.
Buenas noches my familia🎈⚫
Quick question — Did ya’ll know embalmers were a thing? Cause I definitely did not.
