ok… so i really don’t want you to think i’m some morbid person who thinks about death all the time. instead, it was just something i do give some thought to from time to time, as i’m sure most of us do. so i was having a conversation with myra yesterday which began by discussing the recent news of heath ledger’s unfortunate death recently and eventually evolved into a discussion about some of the more enthralling, or maybe more tantalizing, ways one would want to pass away.
first of all, we were both in agreement that death is in most cases just as beautiful as birth, but could also be even more so depending on the person, their life, etc. we discussed that one of the most appealing ways to die would be one in which you are found sitting up in your bed, some sort of media in your lap (book, journal, sketchbook, sheet music, canvas, etc) that has your final work in it, candles around the room that are burned down to the ends of their wicks, an almost empty glass of wine next to the bed, and either classical or opera music playing loudly in the background (medication may be involved depending on the situation). it would be as if you were at complete and total peace with yourself and the world in your final moments here.
another one for myself is to have my life come to and end while doing some amazing physical feat, such as climbing a mountain, hard-core mountain bike trip, or whatever else. just the fact that you are completely pushing yourself to your maximum limit right before you die has got to be one of the most satisfying ways to go.
for me, if possible death should be about making a statement about your life. i don’t want people to mourn my death at my funeral, thinking about all the “should have’s” they never got around to doing while i was still here. i want people to celebrate what i did, what i contributed and to be completely aware of all the struggles i suffered through to get there. i don’t like funerals that just focus on the happy parts of one’s life… that’s not completing the full circle. it’s interesting that if you look at some of the greatest artists and composers from the past (bach, beethoven, etc) all underwent major suffering before their death (and were usually quite depressed most of the time beforehand). it’s clear why they were like that… they were realists. they understood that with life came suffering. that’s what made them and their works great in the end and their deaths so powerful.
anyway, just a thought…