“Death does not frighten me. I’ve thought about it a lot. I was never like the rest of you, making plans about the great things I’d do. I never saw myself as anything much… Why does everyone want to go away? I love being home. But I don’t like being left behind. Now I am the one going ahead.”
—Claire Danes as Beth March from the “Little Women” screenplay, 1994
I have this personal philosophy that every human being is living on borrowed time.
Like Beth, we can die at 18 or we can live until 120. Life is so unpredictable. Take, for example, N.W.A. co-founder Eazy-E’s recent death. He went into the hospital a month ago complaining of breathing problems and now he is dead from a disease he never knew he had until recently. Death is dumb luck.
One minute you are catching the Red Line from downtown Los Angeles to Hancock Park, chatting with a friend, and the next minute a train mangles your body into a human slinky.
I am not saying God is an evil Svengali who chooses when he is going to pull the plug, but death is arbitrary.
It would be nice to argue the time of our death with God.
Me: But I should live until I am 120, because I have a really good disposition.
God: I am sorry, but you must die next week.
Jesus (my counsel): I object your honor. My client deserves at least a year.
Me: A year? But I am only 20!
God: Sorry, dear. You are in contempt. You must die now.
At least you would know your time of death.
Death could also be improved by gambling. One recent Showtime movie has people trade off and gamble the years of their life. Instead of winning megabucks, the person would win a hundred years of life.
We could even have game shows hosted by God where he gives away years of life. They could be “Wheel of Immortality” and “The Price is Life.”
People take their mortality for granted. We make plans to accomplish our various goals in life, never taking into account the present. I am sorry I am so morbid, but, yeah, it is the truth.
College students are a group of people who take things for granted. They study and chart their life. They hardly ever think they will die before finishing school. What if an asteroid smashed into La Verne tomorrow and we all died? Graduate school would definitely be out of question.
The phrase “stop and smell the roses” means so much. I, for one, take for granted the simple things in life, never realizing death is lurking.
There are times when I have to work all weekend and study, so I do not have the time to spend with my friends or my family.
I think to myself, “What if they were taken away now?” I would never have the opportunity to take my sister Loretta to see “Miss Saigon” like I promised her. There would be no trips to Nashville with my parents.
If I knew this was the last day of my life, I sure as heck would not be sitting here, writing this column. I would be with my family and friends.
Like Beth, death does not scare me, but the prospect of being alone and not doing the things I wanted does.
Is there a resolution to death?
For some it is the prospect of reincarnation, while for others there is heaven. Why wait until heaven to respect our mortality or immortality? Take the time now to appreciate life. It would be nice to know when I will die, but the best thing anyone can do is live each day to its fullest.
“I’m not afraid. I can be brave like you. The only part now is leaving you all. I know I shall be homesick for you, even in heaven.”
—Claire Danes as Beth March from the “Little Women” screenplay, 1994
