Intellectually we all know that one day we will die. In our minds we all know this. For many of us the topic of death is not an easy topic to think about let alone talk about. Even when life is rough, and life can become very rough, most of us want to keep on living. This knowledge that we will one day die is just not the most comfortable thought. This is probably why so many do not plan for their death. There are many ways to plan for one’s death. You can make the plans for who will care for your body and what will happen to it. You can plan for the memorial service or event. What most folks do not consider is that planning for your death can be planning for your life.
What does that mean? We live our lives sometimes from moment to moment. We do not always take the time to look at each moment our lives as part of a whole. Sometimes it can be helpful to take a step back and look at the major events in our lives and see what we learned from them or what motivated our choices that lead to those events. In doing this, we might be able to see our core values. Are we motivated by acquiring knowledge? Do we have a real passion for beauty? Do we love to acquire things? Are we very protective of those we love? What dreams have we dreamed and how have they played out in our lives? What kinds of things hinder us? What kinds of things do we allow to hinder us? These are what will make up the stories told about us when we die. What kind of story do we want to leave behind? That is the real question. While no one can control what other people think of us, we can hope to leave behind good stories that people will share once we are gone. We might as well try to make our lives the kind of story we want told. Granted, sometimes life gives us a strange and wonderfully difficult turn, but it is what we do with these roadblocks and in some cases tragedies that makes us who we are and shows our true character. Perhaps, we can take the time and have a look at our life so far and see what kind of story we are leaving behind and if this is the kind of story we want told.
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