Understanding Death Leads to Appreciation of Life

The older we get, the closer we are to the moment of death. The certainty of death is one of the few things all human beings have in common, and yet the topic is considered taboo in polite society. We see death in the news every day, but we don’t talk about our own death or the death of our loved ones – at least not until it happens. Even then, we avoid the words “death” or “died” by saying that someone has “passed away.”

            If someone has “passed” it means they have gone from one place to another. To say that someone passed “away” implies that they went out of existence. Many people do believe that they will no longer exist after death. I can understand how they would avoid thinking about their non-existence as long as there are other things to think about. Other reasons to avoid talk of death may be: (1) it’s considered to be a morbid subject, (2) we don’t want to make others feel uncomfortable, and (3) there is too much disagreement about what happens to us after we die. 

If you’re old enough to be reading the Senior Scene you know that you have to prepare for your death, if you haven’t already. Do you have a will? A power of attorney? An advance directive? There are a lot of things we can do to make life easier for our loved ones after we leave this world. Besides putting things in order for those we’ll leave behind, we can contemplate what will happen to us after we have “passed” from this life to the Great Beyond.

As far as I’m concerned, the worst part of death is the process of getting there.  Like everyone else, I hope to die peacefully in my sleep. I’m not worried about what will happen after that. Ever since I was a child I have thought of the afterlife as the next Great Adventure. And the older I get, the deeper is my understanding that the scope of this adventure is far beyond anything I can imagine with my mortal brain.

Some people reading this column are skeptics who believe they will cease to exist after death. I will not try to convince them otherwise. Some believe that non-Christians are destined for Hell. I’m not trying to change their minds. It is common to say “RIP” when someone dies, as if we have nothing but eternal rest to look forward to. A little rest might be nice, but after a few hundred years or so I’ll be ready for my adventure. I’m kidding about the few hundred years, of course. I will be bored after a few days – that is, if days even feel like days in the eternal now of the Great Beyond.

I have found evidence for the afterlife in the numerous reports of near-death experiences I have read or heard about. Twenty-five years ago, Mark and I went to a SUNY Oneonta presentation by a man named Tom Sawyer who was clinically dead for 15 minutes before being revived. Prior to this experience he was a self-centered, skeptical agnostic. His encounter with the unconditional love of Christ, and his life review, transformed him. The life review, which is described by other survivors of an NDE, is the experience of timelessly re-living one’s entire life and seeing the consequences of every decision. People who relate this experience say that there was no judgement from the Being of Light who showed them their life. The life review guide is sometimes referred to as Christ, and sometimes as a Being of Light. Either way, this spirit offers nothing but unconditional love while the viewer gleans the lessons to be learned from their physical existence.

After hearing many stories from people who had near-death experiences, and from those who communicate with loved ones on the Other Side, I have come to the conclusion that no two afterlife experiences are exactly alike; just as no two earthly lives are alike. One book that stands out from the others because it presents such an expansive and eye-opening picture of eternity is The Afterlife of Billy Fingers: How My Bad-Boy Brother Proved to Me There’s Life After Death by Annie Kagan. Not only does Billy prove to his sister that life is eternal, he shows her that it is more wonderful than anything we can conceive of. His last request is that Annie share his story so that more people will gain insight into the meaning of life and death. With a deeper understanding of death comes peace of mind and a greater appreciation of life. Really.