Life Death.

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deckard
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Life Death.

Post by deckard »

I apologise in advance for the content of this post but it’s something that is on my mind quite a lot recently.

Reaching very soon the grand half century in age I have been increasingly thoughtful about my life and more importantly `how long have I got till it ends`?

Call me crazy, a saddo or whatever but dying is something no living thing can avoid.

It’s something all of us have to face up too at some point in our lives.

Once you reach this Golden Age of 50 the bombardment of junk mail amazingly starts as it has already to swing towards retirement plans, over 50 insurance plans and providing for loved ones that you leave behind. All such offers to join a new scheme all come with the obligatory `no medical needed` statement and of course we must not forget the FREE clock radio if you join before a certain date.

Then of course we start as I have been doing to notice the `new` aches and pains that seem to creep in gradually with the accompanying groans and mumblings as you realise that you are not as young as you once were. You also realise that maybe just maybe those dieticians and health gurus that invade our lives daily through Breakfast T.V and a multitude of Magazine articles might just be talking good sense and that possibly I should sit, watch and take the advice they give a little more seriously.

Why only the other day whilst checking my E-Mails I saw and immediately ordered there and then a special offer for a `Blood Pressure` machine that has arrived today. All I have to do is work out how to use it and everyday I will be able to monitor my blood pressure that will then contribute to my concerns over `how long have I got syndrome` that I have slipped into now.

Hopefully it will encourage me to do as my doctor has been telling me for a while now and that is eat healthier, exercise more and loose weight. Thank heavens that I don’t smoke or drink as trying to eat healthier is hard enough, being a chocoholic and cake loving person that I am it is hard enough to try and cut back these.

Still there is now available a multitude of quick fix or perhaps they should be called quick con of products around that promote `healthy` living and even I now eat my healthy yogurts and down my cholesterol reducing, probiotic, rich in omega 3, blood pressure reducing, fruit adding `wonder pot type` drinks that cram the shelves these days of every supermarket.

For now though I just can’t get it out of my mind that one day I won’t be around to be amongst all the people who are important to me and exist alongside them. Instead I will be just a memory.

I do not regard myself as a religious person so I lean towards the `we just evolved` belief. It just seems so strange here we all are, all of the human population on this planet with our multi-cultural societies and nearly all of us live knowing that one day when our time comes through natural or some other un-fortunate occurrence we will die.

We all want to live forever and some of us belief that there is a life after death and there our others who belief that once your gone that, that is the end of you.

For me at poses a searching question then;

Why is it only humans on this planet that evolved with the power of reason and thought to be able to develop as we have into what we are today? Our quest for knowledge has taken us to the bottom of our oceans and to distant views of our universe. We know what makes us, us down to the very strands of DNA etc and as we search we become more intricate and more knowledgeable. One day we will have searched so far that maybe there will be nothing left for the human race to learn about the human race. We will know all there is to know.

What we will not know is why we ended up who we are, Just why did this race of beings become what we are now?

To have come so far and to end as `nothing` doesn’t seem to be enough for such a creature as us but unless someone knows any different with proof of it we can only wait until that day comes when it is our turn to fall asleep for the very last time and to never wake up ever again.

That thought alone is most probably the one and only thing that scares me the most, so I hope that it will not come for a very long time.



Thanks for reading.
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Peg
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Post by Peg »

To have come so far and to end as `nothing` doesn’t seem to be enough for such a creature as us
As long as we are living, we are touching lives. Yes, we will become a distant memory and forgotten as the generations pass on, but I live for today, try to touch lives, so that the memory of me may bring a smile to someone's face.
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Rapunzel
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Post by Rapunzel »

WOW! Lots of big questions there, Dec!

There's a saying that reads: The more we learn, the less we know.

Pick a subject you know little or nothing about. Read up on it a little. Realise how HUGE that subject is and how much more there is to learn about it. This is true of everything, even tiny things. Think about the ramifications, about how topics digress into other areas. There is always going to be a huge amount that we don't know - but we are learning!

Look back at the last 20 years, then the last 100 years. Look at our advances in space travel - which was only possible in novels in the time of George Orwell or H.G.Wells. Look at out advances in medicine. People used to die from measles or be crippled by polio. We have cured and are curing diseases which were fatal 100 years ago.

You're looking at the big picture, which is hard to get your head around. I know the US is way bigger than the UK, but was told that Texas alone is bigger than the UK and France together. Wow! That's huge! And hard for me to get my head around.

Look at the smaller issues. Take one thing at a time.

I don't believe we will end as 'nothing'. Our bodies are such incredibly complex machines and so well-designed, that we cannot have evolved as we have for no reason!

I hope we will advance mankind so that there is no world poverty and that we are all working together to improve our lives. I like the 'Star Trek' ideology of everyone working together towards a common goal. If we can all aim to improve the world, just a little, we are passing on a better world to future generations. That will be our legacy and how we are remembered. Environmentalism is a huge concept now and will be highly relevant in the forseeable future. If everybody recycled everything, we could aim at leaving a cleaner planet for the future.



I'll leave you with Desiderata.



Desiderata

By Max Ehrman

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,

and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all people.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly;and listen to all

even to the dull and ignorant;

they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive people, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself to others you will become vain and bitter;

there will always be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;

it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery.

But let not this blind you to the virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love;

in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,

no less than the trees and the stars;

you have the right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy.



"Max Ehrmann © 1927, 1954 All Rights Reserved. In some reference books, Desiderata is still sometimes thought to have been 'found' at Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore and to date back to 1692. It was actually written by Max Ehrmann and copyrighted by him in 1927, the copyright was renewed in 1954 by Bertha K. Ehrmann."
weeder
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Post by weeder »

Deck.. Its comforting to know that other 50 something people are having the same thoughts that I do. Having had a brush with death this past summer.. the realization that my adventure could be over any day.. is on my mind almost every day. I too am concerned with leaving the people I love.. and being fearful that I am nothing. For years I got away with thinking that just being a good person was enough of a contribution. But now Im feeling I should have been more of a success. I am not prepared financially for retirement and do not have the means to investigate every ache and pain I feel. Ive been dwelling a lot lately on how frightening it will be for me not to have a mate or a companion to face old age with. And I have always been fearless. I cant really give you a comfort zone to go to.. because I cannott find one myself. I can only say that the things you are pondering will have days when they take over your mind. And days when the thoughts sort of fall to the backdrop of just living your life. Sending hugs your way across the ocean. One stranger to another to maybe give you a warm moment..... and a secure feeling that you are not alone. Weeder
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jennyswan
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Post by jennyswan »

Hi Deckard

OK I'm only 33 but having been through some major changes in my life over the last few years I thought I would add my few cents.

Anyway about four and a half years ago I started suffering from panic disorder. A lot of factors, some particularly bad experiences during childhood and as a young adult. Anyway to cut a long story short I could not think of anything better than dying. I felt like no one understood how I felt and that no one could help me.

I've been raised a Catholic and always believed in God etc but I now felt so alone during this time I felt there was no one who cared or even loved me at all.

Now after reading many books, having received many hugs and help and through loads of tears and laughter I finally feel I'm beginning to live again.

I now am convinced there is life after death (these are my beliefs and I'm not trying to force them on anyone) but I am truly convinced in my heart that there is a power greater than us all. You are never truly alone in your journey through this life and many others.

To live, I believe you have to forget dying. Enjoy life, eat the chocolate and cake and go for long walks in the rain, sit by the fire and read and be good to those who love you. I think if you search inside your heart you will know that you are not just a body but an amazing soul on your journey and you won't die when your time has come to leave the planet but you will still live on and love.

I wouldn't write this only I really believe it in my heart.

Sorry if I've rambled on a bit :o

Hugs for you :-6
Jives
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Post by Jives »

Nomad asked the same questions earlier this year, this is my reply to him, I hope it helps you. I've died and come back to life once, and what I saw on the other side gives me comfort.

Why are we here ?


To become intelligent. The single greatest survival trait is intelligence, It is better and more powerful than any other trait such as fangs or speed. Therefore, where ever life begins, it will evolve towards intelligence eventually. Therefore the reason for the Universe is to create intelligence. The real question is why does the Creator want life to be intelligent?

On Earth that is. Is there a reason ?


Yes. Earth lies in the "life belt". In our orbit, we are not too close to the Sun or too far away. It's not too hot or cold to sustain carrbon-based life here. The early self-replicating molecules found that they could sustain reproduction here. The more complex the form, the better it's chance for survival. Therefore life evolved into humans.

Is it a fluke ?


No...The speed of light is 6.0 X 10^6 mph., the acceleration of gravity is 32 ft.^2, and the distance around a circle (or your atom or a planet, or a galaxy) divided by the distance across it is 3.1415926... These constants are set and have been set since creation. Change just one number by one digit and the entire Universe would cease to exist. So, no. It's no fluke, there is a plan to the Universe.

If God exists, why are we on this tiny blue planet suspended in a vast and seemingly endless void of harsh

uninhabitable cosmos ?


Now you are asking the right question. Why does life exist at all? Since it's obvious that life exists to create intelligence, then the real question is "Why does life need to be intelligent?" No one has this answer, although I have a suspicion. I suggest that since "God lives in the birds and the bees, the rocks and the trees," He experiences his creation through us. Most religious people would agree that an omniscient God would see, hear and experience everything an intelligent human does. Perhaps we are how God lives...He lives through us.

Do we have a unified purpose ?


Once, long, long ago, you and I and everyone else were in the center of a star. That is the only place where heavy atoms like carbon and iron can be made. That star blew up and the dust cloud it made eventually condensed into this solar system. From those very atoms, your mother's body broke down the food molecules that she ate and made your body. That seems pretty unifying to me, but it's still just a unified history, not a purpose.

An individual purpose ?


Absolutely. But like the threads in a great tapestry, you and I cannot know our actual purpose or the repercussions of everything we do each day. But the beauty of the mathematics of creation suggests that there is a very clear purpose.

Is this a test ?


Most likely, yes. If you abscribe to the theory that there is a purpose to the universe, then there is a purpose to every part of the universe, including you. If you do not fulfill your purpose, you fail the test.

Let me put it this way. When you throw a stone into the water, you make ripples. When hundreds of stones are thrown, the ripples cross and recross making fantastic patterns. These patterns are just like our lives. You help a little old lady across the street today. Because of that, she doesn't get hit by a car. She now has a child. That child grows up to invent a cure for cancer. Without your individual purpose of helping her across the street, her son could never realize his individual purpose of inventing a cancer cure.

How are we doing ?


You'll know every detail. Excatly which lives you affected, how much, and when. Every nuance of the millions of decisions that you made throughout your lifespan will be made clear to you....

when you die.

:cool:
All the world's a stage and the men and women merely players...Shakespeare
Benjamin
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Post by Benjamin »

I sometimes forget how old I am. I'll hit the 1/2 century mark in less than two years and here I am thinking about going back to college when I should be out pricing walkers. :wah:
Jives
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Post by Jives »

Benjamin wrote: I sometimes forget how old I am. I'll hit the 1/2 century mark in less than two years and here I am thinking about going back to college when I should be out pricing walkers. :wah:


Look, Ben, 50 is not old anymore. With modern medicine, your life expectancy is around 80 now. With some of the advances like RNA enhancers that will be coming out shortly, you may live as long as 210.

Either way you have decade upon decade of life to go. Better yet, assuming you take care of yourself, your health and quality of life will be unrivaled in all of human history.

I'm 45 and I still swim every day in the summer, ski in the winter, and I can still ride a skateboard with the best of them. (my 15-year-old students get a kick out of seeing a guy in a suit pull off a 360 on a board!)

Even though I have RA, a disease that would have killed me by now in the past, I swing in the swings with my grand daughters and rollerblade with my son thanks to state-of-the-art biologic drugs like Arava.

What you are feeling right now is just ....tired. Life takes it out of you emotionally and physically, but it's just a phase.

Come the springtime, you'll be out mowing yards, riding bikes, and "cannonballing" with the best of them.

Be young at heart. I have an advantage in that I work with children, so I'm always up on the latest music, movies, and trends. It's hard to think old when you spend the day in a small room with teenagers.

Here's a song for you:

Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you

If you’re young at heart

For it’s hard, you will find, to be narrow of mind

If you’re young at heart

You can go to extremes with impossible schemes

You can laugh when your dreams fall apart at the seams

And life gets more exciting with each passing day

And love is either in your heart or on it’s way

Don’t you know that it’s worth every treasure on earth

To be young at heart

For as rich as you are it’s much better by far

To be young at heart

And if you should survive to 105

Look at all you’ll derive out of being alive

Then here is the best part

You have a head start

If you are among the very young at heart

And if you should survive to 105

Look at all you’ll derive out of being alive

Then here is the best part

You have a head start

If you are among the very young at heart

:D
All the world's a stage and the men and women merely players...Shakespeare
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Bez
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Post by Bez »

Guys, guys, guys.....I'm coming up for 60....60 is NOT old.....why the devil are you worrying about coming up for 50....50 is NOT old......stay healthy, make sure you are financially planning for your retirement years and live your life to the full.....:-6
A smile is a window on your face to show your heart is home
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Bez
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Post by Bez »

Benjamin wrote: I sometimes forget how old I am. I'll hit the 1/2 century mark in less than two years and here I am thinking about going back to college when I should be out pricing walkers. :wah:


Go to college...learning exercises your brain ....if you will be mixing with young people.....even better, a bonus.
A smile is a window on your face to show your heart is home
Benjamin
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Post by Benjamin »

Jives wrote:

What you are feeling right now is just ....tired. Life takes it out of you emotionally and physically, but it's just a phase.


I was kidding about the walker. I don't feel 48. I feel like I'm still in my 30s until I look in the mirror and see all the gray hair and my forehead extending to the top of my head. :wah:
Jives
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Post by Jives »

Benjamin wrote: . I feel like I'm still in my 30s


That's the spirit!:D
All the world's a stage and the men and women merely players...Shakespeare
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Bez
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Post by Bez »

Benjamin wrote: I was kidding about the walker. I don't feel 48. I feel like I'm still in my 30s until I look in the mirror and see all the gray hair and my forehead extending to the top of my head. :wah:


Get rid of the mirrors !:D
A smile is a window on your face to show your heart is home
deckard
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Post by deckard »

Hi Rapunzel,

'Star Trek' ideology of everyone working together towards a common goal.

Yes, I love this part of Star Trek. I think it's the main reason why I watch re-run after re-run of it. It would be such a GREAT world if we could all work towards a common goal. Our current world doesn't appear to be anywhere ready to embark on such a way of life. Thats a pity as all of us the world over need such a world and we need it now!
deckard
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Post by deckard »

Hi Weeder,

Thanks for the hugs and warmth, we can keep an eye on each other and things will be just dandy!

Take Care Deckard...
Jives
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Post by Jives »

deckard wrote: Hi Rapunzel,

'Star Trek' ideology of everyone working together towards a common goal.

Yes, I love this part of Star Trek. I think it's the main reason why I watch re-run after re-run of it. It would be such a GREAT world if we could all work towards a common goal. Our current world doesn't appear to be anywhere ready to embark on such a way of life. Thats a pity as all of us the world over need such a world and we need it now!


Yay! (Jives stands up and cheers!) You and me both, brother. I have an "All I need to know about life I learned from "Star Trek" poster in my classroom. It rocks.:D
All the world's a stage and the men and women merely players...Shakespeare
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OpenMind
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Post by OpenMind »

What I want to know is...



Does a fat lady sing when I die?:-3
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OpenMind
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Post by OpenMind »

Clipper wrote: Only if ya pay her in advance......:D


:yh_rotfl :yh_rotfl

Thanks for letting me know, Clipper. I'll be prepared.
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chonsigirl
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Post by chonsigirl »

OpenMind wrote: What I want to know is...



Does a fat lady sing when I die?:-3
That was the first thing I thought of too!

:wah:

I do not think of this much, I am the same age. I only worry about those left behind and what will happen to them. I know what will happen to me, because of my beliefs.

It is best to live one day at a time, and do the best that you can at it. You never know what will happen.

We may be older, we may be young.

But it is sad when it is the young. We had that scare today, one of my students got hit by a car walking to school-she is serious, but should live.

You never know what can happen in life.
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OpenMind
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Post by OpenMind »

It is best to live one day at a time, and do the best that you can at it. You never know what will happen.


That's what I think as well, Chonsi. Live for the moment. Fill the heart with goodness.

I sure hope the fat lady sings, though. That'd make my day (or should I say 'life').:D
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OpenMind
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Post by OpenMind »

Clipper wrote: So how do ya figger yer gonna hear the old gal bellowing ??:D
The fat lady sings before the show ends.

Mind you, if I'd gone deaf, it would all be a waste.:rolleyes:
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OpenMind
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Post by OpenMind »

Clipper wrote: My point perzactly.....and if I wuz on mah deathbed the very last thing I would want to hear is some 400 pound BurgerKing Beauty catterwallin off-key......:D :D :D


So you'd leave before the show ended then.:wah:
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