Consider Death

I doubt this is normal but sometimes I cannot sleep at night because I think about death. Last year I remember trying to fall asleep but not possessing the ability to do so. The only way I find myself to avoid thinking about it is by taking a ton of AP classes. My mind will be so focused on my school work that I do not have time to wonder what death is and what it means. Sometimes during the summer I would just randomly wake up and think about it. Clearly, death presents itself in an elusive manner: it is so commonplace yet so mysterious. Medically speaking, death does not even have a clear definition. Does living off machines—becoming a vegetable—count as death? When the skin and blood are still warm but all circulatory and respiratory functions cease does that count as death? Or is it only when the entire brain, including the brain stem, no longer functions does it count as death?

Forget the medical jargon, death means a loss of our consciousness, memories—all characteristics that make us who we are. I am always left to wonder what it feels like to be dead. If we really lose consciousness, then what happens? Not to mention, in a couple hundred years no one will even remember us. Our existence will simply be recorded by the US government along with everyone else’s death. This inevitable fate is so close but so far away. We delude ourselves into not thinking about it, but death will inevitably creep up on us. Despite the belief that medicine will become advanced to provide immortality, if you simply think about it logically it cannot happen. The world is already filled with billions of people. Death is the only natural phenomena that keeps population in check. The US government is already facing huge issues to provide for the elderly. What makes you think that they want to keep a population that, economically speaking, has no value (unless you are some genius). Alas, death will come—be it tomorrow, next year, or 80 years later.

Humans take refuge in ignorance which allows us to waste their days on Earth. Rather than reaching some existential existence, we fashion ourselves a veil of obliviousness. Instead of valuing a simple drink of water, we take it for granted. Instead of cherishing our time with each other, we find ourselves trying to push people away. For instance, if you were to walk around Troy High and ask people about their parents, they would probably talk about how restrictive they are. Then, ask returning graduates who are at college about their parents. They will tell you about how much they value their parents. People need to wake up already! Death will come. We will all die one day. However, this should not stop us from considering all aspects of life. Away with the obsession with “lobster rolls, lobster turnovers, lobster…” and in with our morality and consciousness (Wallace 655).

These questions will stir-up a lot of debate. Some of you may even think I am crazy. However, this does not stop the power of death. I cannot concede to having found my existential existence. If I were to die today, I would pity myself in that I have wasted 16 years of my life doing nothing. However, for many people this may be wasting 50-60 years of their life. Our society has this firm belief that we will all reach the life expectancy of 80 years—this is not the case for many people. If you died now, would you be proud of what you accomplished? Instead of waiting many years later to do something practical and worthwhile with our lives, we need to start now. Once we reach our imminent death, we will not have to worry about a possible afterlife.