Awareness of Death

Awareness of Death

I welcome an awareness of death into my daily life. I allow it to give shape, depth and meaning to the world around me, to inform my spirit as to the temporary nature of worldly life. Rather than push away the thought of my life ending in fear of that knowledge, I consciously entertain it and let it alter the quality of my day.

Death can walk with me.
 

This awareness of death is the source of zest for life and of our impulse to create not only works of art, but civilizations as well. Not only is human anxiety universally associated with ultimate death, but awareness of death also brings benefits... the more aware we are of death, the more vividly we experience the fact that it is not only beneath our dignity to tell a lie but useless as well. Rome will not burn a second time, so why fiddle during this burning? We can then say with Omar, "The Bird of Time has but a little way to flutter - and the Bird is on the Wing." The men of wisdom throughout history have understood the value for life in our awareness of death. "To philosophize, " said Cicero, "is to prepare for death." And Seneca stated, "No man enjoys the true taste of life but he who is willing and ready to quit it."
Rollo May